tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60000462756628456332017-09-14T01:23:08.634-07:00A Bike JourneyA Bike Journey follows the travels of Guy &amp; Frederike as we leave London on our bikes and head east towards Australia.Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554448387166656719noreply@blogger.comBlogger119125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-9861399024584978282016-03-25T16:56:00.000-07:002016-04-07T00:32:58.565-07:00Life off the bikesIt’s now almost 4 years since we arrived back home in Point Lonsdale, near Melbourne, Australia and we thought it was time for a little update. <br />At the end of our 18,000km bicycle tour we were quite ready to arrive at home and be stationary for a while. As we lived overseas for so long, we have been quite busy getting settled back in here. So far we have been very lucky and were able to house sit for relatives and test drive some areas that we might be interested to live in. We feel particularly at home in Ocean Grove, a small seaside town 1.5 hours south of Melbourne, where Guy’s cousin and some friends live. <br /><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Whatwevebeenupto_DF88/pl_frontbeach.jpg"><img alt="point lonsdale front beach" border="0" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Whatwevebeenupto_DF88/pl_frontbeach_thumb.jpg" height="229" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="point lonsdale front beach" width="304" /></a>&nbsp; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Whatwevebeenupto_DF88/boat_hulls.jpg"><img alt="Queenscliff boats" border="0" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Whatwevebeenupto_DF88/boat_hulls_thumb.jpg" height="229" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Queenscliff boats" width="304" /></a> <span style="color: #f9f0cf;">||</span><br />Never prone to resting and relaxing, we dived straight into the next challenge and started a business! We decided to join forces and start a <a href="http://www.ondetto.com.au/" target="_blank">web design, development and internet marketing agency called Ondetto.</a> <br />When we came back, we got in touch with Guy’s high school, <a href="http://www.ggs.vic.edu.au/">Geelong Grammar</a>, and were invited to give a couple of talks there. Having sorted through our thousands of photos and turned them into a presentation, we visited the school and presented to two groups of year 10 geography students. We were slightly nervous but quickly relaxed when we realised that the students obviously appreciated the diversion from their usual routine. Last week, we gave another school talk, this time to year 5 students of <a href="http://www.ogps.vic.edu.au/">Ocean Grove Primary School</a>. We were able to take the bikes on stage with us and were quite touched when the whole class came up to us afterwards to ask questions about the bikes and our tour. It was no small time investment to prepare for these presentations but it was a hugely rewarding experience.<br />We also gave a few interviews to the local press and made appearances in <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/saddle-story-one-couples-big-ride-home-20111009-1lfj5.html">The Age</a> online edition, a full-page interview in the Geelong Advertiser, as well as write-ups in The Rip and the Otway Tourism newsletter.<br />Some of you may remember <a href="http://abikejourney.blogspot.com/2011/06/warm-up-ride.html">Kerry</a> from our blog. She was the amazing mum who cycled from Geelong to Darwin by herself in 30 days for her graduation. As she is local, we met up with her and her son for coffee. It was great to see her again and very entertaining to hear her story of how she got invited by a trucker’s association to do a keynote speech about her bike tour.<br />Having experienced so much hospitality on our trip, we were also pleased to host <a href="http://www.afistfullofgears.co.uk/blog/">Rog and Dee</a> for one night. We had been following their blog for the last year and been in email contact, so it was lovely to finally meet in person.<br /><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Whatwevebeenupto_DF88/IMG_2046.jpg"><img alt="Kerry" border="0" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Whatwevebeenupto_DF88/IMG_2046_thumb.jpg" height="274" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Kerry" width="206" /></a>&nbsp; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Whatwevebeenupto_DF88/IMG_4697.jpg"><img alt="Rog and Dee" border="0" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Whatwevebeenupto_DF88/IMG_4697_thumb.jpg" height="274" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline;" title="Rog and Dee" width="364" /></a> <br />Do we still like to ride our bikes? We do take them out a spin sometimes, but only when the weather is good. We look forward to some more cycle touring in the future, but for the moment we are quite happy to take it easy. There’s a big surfing scene down here and we’ve started getting into that too – it’s nice to use a different muscle group for a change.<br />After being away for so long, it has been lovely to spend time with family and friends again, knowing that we’re here to stay and ready to put down some roots.Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-47002206480663658222016-03-21T03:48:00.000-07:002016-03-25T04:19:22.593-07:00Roam MTB - Mountain Bike Trail MapsI wanted to introduce a new app I have been working on, Roam MTB. It is a revolutionary app for mountain bike trail navigation that uses real time 3D maps. View your exact location on the innovative and interactive 3D maps and easily navigate your way through a mountain bike trail network. Each map has a complete trail list with valuable information on each trail.<br /><br />Best of all the app works completely offline. It’s like having a local guide with you on every ride!<br /><br />Our aim is to compile a comprehensive and accurate trail network that assists current and future MTB riders to explore our amazing network of trails. We work with MTB clubs to assist in mapping their trail network and getting up to date trail information in the hands of park users. We only map official MTB trails as we want to promote safe and responsible use of the trails and work closely with local park management groups to ensure the track data is up to date and assist in promoting not only their park but their local area.<br /><br /><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/roam-mtb-3d-gps-offline-mountain/id1041239044?ls=1&amp;mt=8">Download the app for free on the iTunes app store</a>.<br /><br /><b>3D view of the mountain bike trail terrain:</b><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VBvFGSWYwvg/VvUOposDf2I/AAAAAAAABHs/UnjA6B6sYCItu34scGfpPs0rO7DWGCGiA/s1600/1.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VBvFGSWYwvg/VvUOposDf2I/AAAAAAAABHs/UnjA6B6sYCItu34scGfpPs0rO7DWGCGiA/s640/1.PNG" width="358" /></a></div><br /><b>View trail status and find out valuable information such a difficulty and trail length:</b><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IihLQ5Z62DQ/VvUOs_Lv1_I/AAAAAAAABHs/hi9IYkt2IpcWAs6RbHMbilXZhWLcFiIFw/s1600/4.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IihLQ5Z62DQ/VvUOs_Lv1_I/AAAAAAAABHs/hi9IYkt2IpcWAs6RbHMbilXZhWLcFiIFw/s640/4.PNG" width="356" /></a></div><br /><b>Set to view the trails in 3D or 2D and cache for complete offline use:</b><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PfKT4gYMvQc/VvUOoix_QRI/AAAAAAAABHs/Z-44ieJ1LqA5EdZUuvDfPEiKRuUDstqDg/s1600/3.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PfKT4gYMvQc/VvUOoix_QRI/AAAAAAAABHs/Z-44ieJ1LqA5EdZUuvDfPEiKRuUDstqDg/s640/3.PNG" width="358" /></a></div><br /><br />All trail maps can be previewed in 2D on the Roam MTB website <a href="http://www.roammtb.com/">www.roammtb.com</a>.<br /><br /><br />Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554448387166656719noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-1425526233170494072011-10-08T17:33:00.001-07:002011-11-06T23:04:33.090-08:00Thank You<p>Now that we have finished our 18,000km bicycle tour and basked in the glory of our achievement for the past few weeks, it’s time to admit that we never could have done it without the many kind souls who helped us out along the way. <span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> <p>While we planned our trip, we read many inspiring blogs and books and contacted several experienced cyclists for advice. Special mentions go to Anne Mustoe’s book <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0863696503/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=abikejourney-21&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=1634&amp;creative=6738&amp;creativeASIN=0863696503" target="_blank">A Bike Ride</a>, which was our first inspiration for cycle touring, and <a href="http://www.alastairhumphreys.com/" target="_blank">Alastair Humphrey’s</a> brilliant <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1903070562/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=abikejourney-21&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=1634&amp;creative=6738&amp;creativeASIN=1903070562" target="_blank">books</a> about his round-the-world cycle tour. </p> <p>Al Humphreys also organised a pub night in London where we met other cycle tourers - Friedel and Andrew from <a href="http://travellingtwo.com/" target="_blank">TravellingTwo</a>, who had already helped us out with lots of advice before our meet-up and have since published a <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B004YR8D90/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=abikejourney-21&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=1634&amp;creative=6738&amp;creativeASIN=B004YR8D90" target="_blank">Bike Touring Survival Guide</a> that is packed full of useful tips and information. We also met Justin and Emma from <a href="http://www.rolling-tales.com/" target="_blank">Rolling Tales</a>, who were about to embark on their own journey to New Zealand and who we later met again in Turkey, and Di who we ended up cycling with from Budapest to Istanbul. Tara and Tyler from <a href="http://www.goingslowly.com/" target="_blank">Going Slowly</a> answered our many pre departure questions via Skype from their tent in Romania and we had the pleasure of catching up with them in Bangkok. Many other blogs provided inspiration as well as practical advice and helped us gain the courage to embark on our own journey. </p> <p>On our first day leaving London our friends Gerry and Dom cycled out with us. That night we were offered a bed by Andrea in Dartford via the <a href="http://www.warmshowers.org/" target="_blank">Warmshowers</a> website, making for a great start to our journey. During our tour we were hosted by many other people who invited us into their homes: Catherine &amp; Mathieu in Metz, Charlotte in Strasbourg, Sandra &amp; Alex in Böblingen, Jürgen in Vienna, Ulas in Turkey, Hossein &amp; Sohra in Iran, Mahmud &amp; Mahdie in Iran, Ahmad and his family in Iran, Melanie in Abu Dhabi, Chuen and his mum in Singapore, Ruth &amp; Glen in Darwin, Paul &amp; Jenny in Adelaide, John &amp; Rachel near Timboon, Peter &amp; Corinne in Wye River and Tony &amp; Pam in Fairhaven on the last night of our tour. </p> <p>Countless people helped us along the way by stopping for a chat, giving us directions, presenting us with food or drinks, waving or giving us the the thumbs up, buying us a meal or inviting us to into their homes, letting us camp in their garden, taking us on tours of their local area or even doing water drops for us in the Australian Outback. There are too many to name, but you know who you are and we will always remember your acts of kindness. </p> <p>Along the way, some of our friends and family came out to visit us. It was great to see familiar faces en route. Gudrun came to meet us in Ulm, Freddie’s parents, sister and brother-in-law visited us in Vienna, Tony showed us around Budapest, Janna &amp; Marco and Gerry came out to Istanbul, Abhishek &amp; Priya and Amol introduced us to Mumbai, Nick &amp; Aom met us in Bangkok and Nick spent a week cycling with us in Thailand, we met up with Beng near Kuala Lumpur, Tze-Ern and Ben took us out for a meal in Singapore and Guy’s sister Justine visited us in Adelaide. The prize for the most visits however goes to Freddie’s dad, Gerhard, who came out to see us 3 times – in Vienna, Istanbul and Dubai. Each time he carried a parcel full of spare parts, hand delivered from Germany, as well as sponsoring us some treats along the way.</p> <p>A special thank you goes to everyone who has made a <a href="http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-web/fundraiser/showFundraiserProfilePage.action?userUrl=abikejourney&amp;isTeam=true" target="_blank">donation to SOS Children’s Villages</a> to sponsor our ride, and to the charity itself who invited us to visit one of their villages in Kerala, India. </p> <p>When planning our tour, we made sure that our gear was high quality, durable and light weight. The companies supplying our gear have for the most part been extremely helpful when something did go wrong. <a href="http://eu2.icebreaker.com/" target="_blank">Icebreaker</a> replaced a worn T-Shirt for free, <a href="http://www.ortlieb.co.uk/" target="_blank">Ortlieb</a> sent us replacement clips for our panniers, <a href="http://cascadedesigns.com/en/therm-a-rest" target="_blank">Thermarest</a> sent us two (!) new sleeping mats (the original one had delaminated and the first replacement was lost in the mail), <a href="http://generalecology.com/category/portable/product/first_need_xl_portable_water_purifier-new" target="_blank">General Ecology</a> sponsored us a new First Need water filter cartridge, and <a href="http://www.bikesportz.com.au/" target="_blank">Bikesportz</a> sponsored us new <a href="http://www.panaracer.com/home.php" target="_blank">Panaracer</a> tyres.</p> <p>A huge thank you to the crew at <a href="http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/" target="_blank">SJS</a> who supplied us with our <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/kit_reviews/thorn_raven_tour_bicycle.aspx" target="_blank">Thorn Raven bicycles</a> which have served us loyally for over 23,000km without any major issues, not even a broken spoke. They were the most important kit item and they never let us down and certainly the upgrades to double walled rims, thick spokes and <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/kit_reviews/rohloff_speed_hub.aspx" target="_blank">Rohloff hub</a> were integral in this.</p> <p>Our families have been extremely patient and supportive. Despite the fact that they sometimes worried about us, they never complained about our extended tour and always tried to act as if it was normal that we’d call them up from a phone booth in Iran announcing we’d be out of touch for the next 8 days as we were about to cross a desert.</p> <p>Finally, we have really enjoyed writing this blog and connecting with people through our <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/" target="_blank">website</a>, <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/abikejourney" target="_blank">Twitter</a> and more recently <a href="facebook.com/abikejourney" target="_blank">Facebook</a>. We still get pretty excited when we receive a message or comment, and the encouragement of our readers has seen us through some tough times. Twitter in particular has allowed us to hook up with many interesting people along the way who were on their own extended cycle tours.</p> <p align="left">We hope that we were able to pass on some useful information and learnings to people planning their own tour to close the loop and give back what we received when we first started out.</p> <p align="left">-- THANK YOU!</p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-73924551859531733982011-10-02T22:21:00.001-07:002011-10-08T17:33:17.651-07:00How It All Started<p><em>&quot;The object of life's journey is not to arrive at the grave safely, in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, totally worn out shouting holy shit, what a ride&quot; - Mavis Leyrer</em></p> <p>A few people have asked us how we came up with the idea of cycling to Australia. </p> <p>We were both regular cyclists during our younger years but never did anything extreme. When travelling in Cambodia in 2003 we hired some bicycles to explore the ruins of Angkor Wat for a few days. This gave us our first taste of bicycle travel in a foreign land. We were instantly taken by the freedom: we could go anywhere we pleased and we found the local kids got a real buzz out of a couple of foreigners on bikes, it helped bridge the divide.<span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> <p>Still we never thought about doing serious bicycle travel; we assumed that was reserved for the super fit. That was until Guy read <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0863696503/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=abikejourney-21&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=1634&amp;creative=6738&amp;creativeASIN=0863696503">a book by an elderly English lady called Anne Mustoe</a>. She couldn't repair a puncture, wasn't into sports, didn't even like camping but she cycled around the world, twice!</p> <p>The more he thought about it the more Guy loved the idea of cycling from the UK to Australia. After all, we had seen these intriguing lands many times from the perspective of an aeroplane and it must be much more exciting to explore them on a bicycle. Freddie was not so sure, it was a long way and we had never cycled for two consecutive days let alone half way around the world.</p> <p>To try to convince Freddie that cycling to Oz was a sensible thing to do we tested ourselves in an area that would challenge us and test our resolve to the utmost: Provence, in southern France.</p> <p>After a week of swanning around sun drenched vineyards and staying in cosy B&amp;B's Freddie declared she was ready for the world of cycle touring.</p> <p>We started to make preparations for the trip, drew lines on maps, spent hours at book shops reading up on travel guides and purchased items we never knew existed like a <a href="http://www.bushwalking.org.au/FAQ/FAQ_Cooking.htm#Spon" target="_blank">Spondonicle</a> and a <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B001E7S5BO/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=abikejourney-21&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=1634&amp;creative=6738&amp;creativeASIN=B001E7S5BO">Spork</a>. Our first real, put your money where your mouth is moment was when we purchased our touring bikes. We had always had second hand bikes before and though they were the bee's knees, that was until we felt the ride on our brand new beautiful <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/kit_reviews/thorn_raven_tour_bicycle.aspx" target="_blank">Thorn Raven touring bikes</a>.</p> <p>We couldn't wait for them to be delivered so we travelled for half a day to go pick them up. We cycled 180km back home over three days in pouring rain following muddy canal paths, and we loved it. Sure the cycling was miserable but we really felt the joy of being out in the open country and travelling at a pace where we could see the detail in the world around us.</p> <p>As the deliveries trickled in and our little London flat began to resemble an outdoor shop we thought we should perhaps challenge ourselves and see if we could hack more than a week on the road.</p> <p>Having lived in the UK we thought a trip from Lands End in the south to John O’Groats in the North was the way to go. So we booked off the holiday time and set about our first real biking challenge. It hurt, the days were long, we barely stopped, the scenary was beautiful but we had little time to appreciate it. We completed the ride but it nearly killed us, we were out of our comfort zone too often. Touring on a tight schedule was not for us. We liked to get up late and have a lazy breakfast. We liked to talk to the farmers in the fields or assist a wayward caterpillar in crossing the road. We weren't in it for just a challenge. We were in it for the way of life, the adventure, and the discoveries along the way.</p> <p>Understanding this enabled us to devise a ride back home that factored in plenty of time with manageable daily distances. As the day approached we couldn't really comprehend what we were about to do. We fluctuated between bouts of optimism to serious doubts and sleepless nights. Nonetheless we had let word slip about our adventure and we weren't brave enough now to pull out. So we got on our bikes and started pedalling our way to Australia and along the way had the most incredible experience of our lives... </p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-58197333138008441112011-09-24T05:59:00.001-07:002011-09-24T05:59:11.340-07:00The Final Day – A Video Log<p>Here it is, the final day, compressed to 3 minutes of video. Enjoy the cheesy music, turn it up!</p> <p></p> <div style="padding-bottom: 0px; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: none; padding-top: 0px" id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:947accec-2a93-434a-b115-e6348c6699f6" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent"><div id="e369c2ab-fe7e-4aac-a8dd-6545e52e2ccf" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; display: inline;"><div><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UeZU6ZlGv28" target="_new"><img src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/VideoOfOurLastDay_F308/video6379a928b6dc.jpg" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('e369c2ab-fe7e-4aac-a8dd-6545e52e2ccf'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = &quot;&lt;div&gt;&lt;object width=\&quot;439\&quot; height=\&quot;367\&quot;&gt;&lt;param name=\&quot;movie\&quot; value=\&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/UeZU6ZlGv28&amp;hl=en\&quot;&gt;&lt;\/param&gt;&lt;embed src=\&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/UeZU6ZlGv28&amp;hl=en\&quot; type=\&quot;application/x-shockwave-flash\&quot; width=\&quot;439\&quot; height=\&quot;367\&quot;&gt;&lt;\/embed&gt;&lt;\/object&gt;&lt;\/div&gt;&quot;;" alt=""></a></div></div></div> <p></p> <p><span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-27865895694068685462011-09-18T05:11:00.001-07:002011-10-02T22:25:14.408-07:00Crossing the Finish Line<p><em>Skenes Creek – Point Lonsdale</em></p> <p>The Great Ocean Road really is a cycling mecca. The smooth road winds its way over gentle hills alongside the dramatic Southern Ocean. Every few kilometres a viewing area promises photo opportunities looking back over the stunning coastline, and on a weekday in early spring, the traffic is almost non-existent. It’s no wonder that Australia’s cycling elite favours this area and even the current Tour de France champion Cadel Evans lives down here, just 15 minutes down the road from Guy’s parents house. <span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4215.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Great Ocean Road beach" border="0" alt="Great Ocean Road beach" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4215_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="370" /></a> </p> <p>Guy’s dad had alerted some family friends living along the coast about our arrival, and so it was that we met Peter along the way near Skenes Creek. He had come out to meet us and ride together for a few hours. Peter had been introduced to cycling a couple of years ago by his mate, Tour de France stage winner Phil Anderson, who lent Peter his bike to give cycling a try. Peter hasn’t looked back since, and we are not surprised as he lives bang smack in the middle of one of the most beautiful section of the Great Ocean Road. </p> <p>We had planned to camp at Wye River for the night, but as this is where Peter lives, he kindly invited us to stay with him and his wife, Corinne. Peter and Corinne have an incredible house and a <a href="http://www.thedeckhouse.com.au/" target="_blank">small but luxurious B&amp;B</a> on a steep slope perched above the ocean below. The lounge room felt like the upper deck of a ship with its 180° seaview, and just as we arrived we watched a pod of dolphins playing in the waves of the bay below. In winter, migrating whales can often be seen from the house as they head towards Warrnambool to breed. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4210.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Peter" border="0" alt="Peter" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4210_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4223.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Freddie and Corinne" border="0" alt="Freddie and Corinne" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4223_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>The hamlet of Wye River, like many others, was only accessible by boat or by rough bush track before the Great Ocean Road was built by returned servicemen after the First World War. The purpose of building the Great Ocean Road was to provide work for these soldiers, as well as making the area more accessible for logging and tourism.</p> <p>It was our lucky day as Peter and Corinne were so lovely and really spoiled us on our second-last night of the trip. We fell asleep to the sound of the waves and awoke to a beautiful view over the bay. We only had a short day’s cycling planned and enjoyed a leisurely breakfast with Corinne before we headed off towards Lorne. </p> <p>In Lorne, we met up with Tony, another friend of Guy’s dad and an early cycling inspiration for Guy. Guy remembers the moment when Tony showed up at his parents house (Guy was about 13), having just cycled around Australia. 15,000km in 72 days! Guy distinctly remembers thinking he was nuts! <br /> <br /><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4243.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Great Ocean Road" border="0" alt="Great Ocean Road" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4243_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4241.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Tony" border="0" alt="Tony" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4241_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>Tony had invited us to stay with him and his wife Pam in Fairhaven. They have a lovely place overlooking the lighthouse and the sea, with a beautiful little cottage they used to rent out as a B&amp;B, which was to be our home for the night. </p> <p>Tony and Pam are so energetic, we really hope we can be a little like them later on in life. Despite being 70 years of age, Tony still runs half marathons and would whoop guys half his own age when on the bike. He is a great sportsman and even had the honour of carrying the olympic torch before the Sydney Olympics.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4269.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="With Tony and Pam" border="0" alt="With Tony and Pam" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4269_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4233.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Beach" border="0" alt="Beach" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4233_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>We couldn’t sleep as we were so excited. What a great way to spend our last night on the road! We felt very lucky indeed.</p> <p>On our last morning we were extra careful to take our time and not mess up. We didn’t want anything to go wrong now, so close to our goal. </p> <p>Therefore Tony was surprised to see us again an hour later, barely 10km on, enjoying our last guilt-free binge at a bakery and soaking up the beautiful sunshine. The weather was just perfect, a real spring day with 20°C and a cloudless sky (just as we were also blessed with beautiful spring weather on <u><a href="http://abikejourney.blogspot.com/2010/05/early-days.html" target="_blank">the day we left London</a></u> in May 2010). </p> <p>We were now cycling along the Surf Coast with its world class surfing beaches. Bells Beach featured in several surfing movies and hosts the world’s longest running annual surf competition which started in 1961. Guy couldn’t help ogling the surf boards for sale everywhere and was clearly looking forward to dusting down his own surfboard which was hanging up in his parents garage. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4275.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Surf boards for sale" border="0" alt="Surf boards for sale" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4275_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4287.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Bells Beach" border="0" alt="Bells Beach" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4287_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>When we reached Barwon Heads, we were really on our home turf. Coffee At The Heads was a mandatory stop and a bit emotional too as we had enjoyed many coffees here in the past and were only 15km from home now.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4300.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="At The Heads, Barwon Heads" border="0" alt="At The Heads, Barwon Heads" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4300_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4312.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Point Lonsdale" border="0" alt="Point Lonsdale" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4312_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>Passing through Ocean Grove, we soon rolled down the hill towards the village of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Point_Lonsdale" target="_blank">Point Lonsdale</a> and the end of our journey. We had butterflies in our stomachs and, feeling excited and nervous, resisted the temptation to cycle straight to Guy’s parents house. First, we needed to visit the front beach and the light house. </p> <p>Point Lonsdale’s headland, together with Point Nepean on the other side, frames The Rip, the narrow entrance to Port Philip Bay. All ships travelling to and from Melbourne have to pass through The Rip, one of the most treacherous waterways in the world. Even nowadays, despite the existence of GPS, most ships are escorted into and out of the bay with pilot boats who know the exact location of the dangerous reefs. </p> <p>Racing up to the light house at the headland, we felt stunned. How many times had we replayed this moment in our minds, it was always such a long way away, but now we were really here. WE HADE MADE IT! </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4321.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="ARRIVAL IN POINT LONSDALE" border="0" alt="ARRIVAL IN POINT LONSDALE" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4321_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4314.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Point Lonsdale lighthouse" border="0" alt="Point Lonsdale lighthouse" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4314_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>With disbelief in our voices, we laughed and yelled and whooped. </p> <p>When we left London, with <a href="http://abikejourney.blogspot.com/2010/05/getting-in-shape.html" target="_blank">Freddie’s back issues</a> we didn’t even know if we would make it to France, and here we were, having cycled ALL THE WAY (the back pain never came back). The whole <strong>18,168 km</strong>. Always thinking of this little lighthouse as our end goal, but at times it seemed just too far away. There was so much to get right, so much that could potentially go wrong. Though not under huge time pressure we had to keep moving, we knew we couldn’t afford to be ill for too long, we new we couldn’t afford to wait weeks for a spare bike part to arrive.</p> <p>One thing we knew was that giving up was not an option. The decision might be made for us, out of our control, but we certainly weren’t going to give up easily.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/NewPicture.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Point Lonsdale map" border="0" alt="Point Lonsdale map" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/NewPicture_thumb.png" width="654" height="364" /></a> </p> <p>We were especially proud to achieve our ultimate goal and not take a single lift. (Ok, apart from the time a police chief in Iran <u><a href="http://abikejourney.blogspot.com/2010/10/from-persian-carpets-to-highway.html" target="_blank">forced us into a pickup truck for 25km</a></u>). Cycling all the way and not taking lifts was important to us for a few reasons: Kind people donated to <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/charity.aspx" target="_blank">our charity</a>, and the challenge we set was to <em>cycle</em> to Australia. Hitching lifts would have also diminished the feeling of satisfaction and achievement for us. </p> <p>Before we knew it we were climbing our last hill, on the other side was home and the end of an era. We stood at the top and looked down towards the finish line. Some part was pulling us back, not wanting to relinquish the vagabond life we have grown to love. Another part of us knew that it can’t go on for ever, and we wouldn’t want it to, the time was right to end the ride. </p> <p>We shifted down for the final time and cruised down the hill towards Guy’s parents house, we could already spot them in the distance, looking out for us. Richard, Di and their little Jack Russell Maddie had waited for this moment for so long, patiently putting up with all our detours and explorations. They looked pretty happy that we were finally there for real!</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4325.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Di, Richard and Maddie" border="0" alt="Di, Richard and Maddie" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4325_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="424" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4338.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="HOME" border="0" alt="HOME" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/SkenesCreekPointLonsdale_9745/IMG_4338_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="424" /></a></p> <p>There was nothing more to do than flick the kettle on and put our feet up!</p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-12441204133395047732011-09-15T22:08:00.001-07:002011-09-15T22:08:58.067-07:0010 Things We’ll Miss<p>With the end in sight we have been thinking about the things we’ll miss most when our 15 month cycle tour comes to an end. Here is our list:</p> <p>1. The freedom and the adventure.</p> <p>2. Connecting instantly with other like minded cycle tourers.</p> <p>3. The ability to get “under the skin” of the countries we passed through and at times <u><a href="http://abikejourney.blogspot.com/2011/02/canoe-ferry-temple-feast-and-elephant.html" target="_blank">feeling like minor celebrities</a></u> with all the attention our bikes commanded.</p> <p>4. Wild camping in the Australian Outback – sitting around our camp fire at night and star gazing, and waking up in the morning to the sounds of kangaroos jumping around our tent.</p> <p>5. Those first few moments of a shower after some hard days cycling and wild camping.</p> <p>6. Having few possessions and responsibilities.</p> <p>7. Regularly experiencing the kindness of strangers, whether it be <u><a href="http://abikejourney.blogspot.com/2010/10/iranian-home-stay.html" target="_blank">a bed for the night</a></u>, a warm cuppa or just the thumbs up as we cycle past.</p> <p>8. Feeling fitter, stronger and healthier than ever before. </p> <p>9. Big wide open spaces of places like the <u><a href="http://abikejourney.blogspot.com/2011/07/cycling-mereenie-loop.html" target="_blank">Australian Outback</a></u> and <a href="http://abikejourney.blogspot.com/2010/09/mountains-and-lakes.html" target="_blank">Central Turkey</a></p> <p>10. The immense feeling of satisfaction having made it to our destination after a hard day’s cycling. <span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-9379205630049280302011-09-14T05:36:00.001-07:002011-09-14T06:15:06.344-07:0018,000 km Photo<p>It felt unreal to be standing at the 12 Apostles on the Great Ocean Road, so close to home, after 15 months on the road and with 18,000km under our wheels. </p> <p>This is our final kilometre marker photo, which is a little sad but all good things come to an end. We just feel so fortunate that we have been able to follow our dream and that we made it this far.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/18000kmPhoto_AC47/IMG_4163.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="18000km photo" border="0" alt="18000km photo" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/18000kmPhoto_AC47/IMG_4163_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="492" /></a><span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-32396065618453908812011-09-12T04:47:00.001-07:002011-09-15T22:16:24.101-07:00The Great Ocean Road<p><em>Timboon – Skenes Creek</em></p> <p>Rejoining the Great Ocean Road, we stopped at some of the numerous rock formations that have been formed by the powerful seas crashing into the coast line. The day we arrived storm clouds formed a menacing backdrop as winds whipped up a huge swell that slammed into the coast with all its destructive might. The surf report for the local spots simply read: “Too big”.<span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> <p>Until 1990, London Bridge (see image below) was actually connected to the land, forming a natural bridge with two arches. One of the arches had caved in, leaving two people (rumour has it they were having an affair!) stranded on the rock formation for hours before being rescued by helicopter.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortCampbellPointLonsdale_8E2B/IMG_4092.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="London Bridge" border="0" alt="London Bridge" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortCampbellPointLonsdale_8E2B/IMG_4092_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="370" /></a> </p> <p>In Port Campbell we took a rainy day off: our last rest day of the trip. The following morning we visited the impressive Loch Ard Gorge, named after the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loch_Ard_(ship)" target="_blank">English passenger ship</a> that had been wrecked here in 1878, smashed up on the steep cliffs in heavy fog. It is not without reason that this treacherous coast is now known as the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shipwreck_Coast" target="_blank">Shipwreck Coast</a>, with over 50 wrecks lining its rugged shores. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortCampbellPointLonsdale_8E2B/IMG_4148.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="12 Apostles" border="0" alt="12 Apostles" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortCampbellPointLonsdale_8E2B/IMG_4148_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="370" /></a> </p> <p>A visit to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Twelve_Apostles_(Victoria)" target="_blank">12 Apostles</a>, the most famous landmark of the Great Ocean Road, left us bemused as only 8 of these limestone formations are now left, the most recent apostle having collapsed in 2005. It is still an impressive sight, particularly in windy weather when the metre high waves crash into the cliffs. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortCampbellPointLonsdale_8E2B/IMG_4165.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Nice view" border="0" alt="Nice view" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortCampbellPointLonsdale_8E2B/IMG_4165_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortCampbellPointLonsdale_8E2B/IMG_4202.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Guy and Freddie" border="0" alt="Guy and Freddie" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortCampbellPointLonsdale_8E2B/IMG_4202_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>Leaving the coast behind, we prepared for our last big climb of the trip: the 500m ascent into the Otway National Park. The windy road was relatively quiet and wound its way through thick rain forest. The climb was fairly steep but quite doable. As it rained all day, we were not pleased when we found out that the campsite we had expected in Lavers Hill did not actually exist. </p> <p>Fed up with being cold and wet, we treated ourselves to a night in a motel. Freddie’s dad, feeling sorry for us camping out all the time, had generously given us a treat budget to enjoy on our last few days on the road, which we spent on food, coffees and this much appreciated night in the motel. Thanks Papa!</p> <p>We woke up to thick fog, drizzle, and six alpacas peering into our motel window. Raingear and lights on, we took to the road again. We had decided to go inland a little to explore the area around the village of Beech Forest.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortCampbellPointLonsdale_8E2B/IMG_4185.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Rosella" border="0" alt="Rosella" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortCampbellPointLonsdale_8E2B/IMG_4185_thumb.jpg" width="437" height="264" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortCampbellPointLonsdale_8E2B/IMG_4194.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Freddie on Turtons Track" border="0" alt="Freddie on Turtons Track" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortCampbellPointLonsdale_8E2B/IMG_4194_thumb.jpg" width="199" height="264" /></a> </p> <p>A coffee and an excellent lunch at the Ridge Cafe in Beech Forest left us refreshed as we set off towards Turtons Track. Turtons Track is a narrow logging track that had recently been sealed and meanders through thick temperate rainforest with impressively high beech trees laden with moss and ferns. It was a beautiful ride and a great alternative to the much busier Great Ocean Road section between Lavers Hill and Skenes Creek. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortCampbellPointLonsdale_8E2B/IMG_4190.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Turtons Track" border="0" alt="Turtons Track" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortCampbellPointLonsdale_8E2B/IMG_4190_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="492" /></a>&#160;&#160; </p> <p>Once we left Turton’s Track we were rewarded with a magnificent 10km downhill with dramatic ocean views as we weaved our way back to the Great Ocean Road at Skenes Creek. Our final detour complete we were now within TWO DAYS strike of home; exciting but a little frightening.</p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-83262451851746636612011-09-08T20:16:00.001-07:002011-09-12T04:37:27.417-07:00A Taste of Victoria<p><em>Robe – Timboon</em></p> <p>Leaving Robe, the tailwinds persisted and the sunshine made for a perfect day of cycling. For lunch, we stopped at Beachport, a sleepy fishing village surrounded by surf beaches. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_3986.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Beachport" border="0" alt="Beachport" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_3986_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_3993.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Attention Wombats" border="0" alt="Attention Wombats" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_3993_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>We camped in Millicent and not feeling like tackling the big lights of Mount Gambier we zigzagged on quite rural roads towards the Victorian border. <span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> <p><font color="#333333">The Mount Gambier area is famous for its sinkholes so we were chuffed to stumble across one, materialising out of the surrounding farm land. Formed due to the corrosion of limestone rocks, some sinks holes are over 77m deep.</font><font color="#ff0000"> </font>Guy dipped his toes into the freezing water but stopped short of a swim.</p> <p>Just around the corner we came across our final border, after countless border crossing from one foreign land to another we now entered our home state of Victoria. All of a sudden we felt home was very very close.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_3997.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Sinkhole" border="0" alt="Sinkhole" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_3997_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4004.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Welcome to Victoria" border="0" alt="Welcome to Victoria" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4004_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>Rolling into the small settlement of Nelson just across the Victorian border we ran into Dan, a Canadian cyclist who had cycled across the Nullarbor desert from Perth.</p> <p>Dan liked to talk kit so we soon fell into geeky discussions; Dome Vs Tunnel tent design, MSR <font color="#333333">XGX or</font> MSR Whisperlite. Guy and Dan had a “boil off” to see which stove could bring 2 cups of water to boil first. Much to Dan’s delight the MSR XGX, legendary for its roaring “Jet” style flame took the honours by about 15 seconds but certainly lost points due to its potential for operator ear damage.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4008.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Boil off" border="0" alt="Boil off" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4008_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4010.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Rainbow in Nelson" border="0" alt="Rainbow in Nelson" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4010_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>We cycled out with Dan on a cold and showery morning. Dan liked to compose songs when he cycled and we enjoyed such classics as “Oh No Not Another Hill” and “Road Train Approaching, I’ve Got The Hippy Hippy Shake”.</p> <p>At Portland we had lunch together before Dan pushed on while we looked for a campsite. None of the campsites in town had a decent camp kitchen where we could sit and work, but we eventually found a campsite with a decommissioned bunkhouse which they offered us for a cheap price.</p> <p>Not long after jumping back on the bikes we arrived in Port Fairy, a posh seaside village popular with holidaying Melbournites. Exploring the fancy cafes and antique shops was the last thing on our mind as we searched for a campsite in the driving rain. </p> <p>We had hoped to take a day off here but as there were no good facilities at the campsite and the weather wasn’t great, we decided to push on. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4013.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Port Fairy Marina" border="0" alt="Port Fairy Marina" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4013_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4016.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Port Fairy" border="0" alt="Port Fairy" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4016_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>We passed through Warrnambool and stopped off at Logans Beach for some whale spotting. In winter, Southern Right Whales migrate north from Antarctica and are often seen in the bay as the females calve in the warmer waters. The Southern Right’s were considered the “right” ones to hunt as they float when killed and swim close to the shores. Prior to hunting they numbered over 60,000; today though the numbers are slowly increasing there are still only around 7,000.</p> <p>We waited around for an hour or so but the whales weren’t coming out to say hello so we pushed on towards Timboon where we wanted to visit <u><a href="http://abikejourney.blogspot.com/2011/07/round-rock-by-bicycle.html" target="_blank">John and Rachel</a></u>, a couple we had met a few months ago at Uluru. </p> <p>John and Rachel are currently living on John’s mum’s property which they have transformed from a sparse, empty field into a blooming garden. The fences were lined with berries, there were countless fruit trees ranging from plums and apples to guavas and oranges, and the veggie garden brimmed with healthy greens, artichokes and giant carrots. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4040.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Garden tour" border="0" alt="Garden tour" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4040_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4049.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Chamomile flours" border="0" alt="Chamomile flours" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4049_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>It was great to catch up with John and Rachel, learn about their take on biodynamic gardening and permaculture, sit by the fire and enjoy Rachel’s hearty root vegetable stew. We left the following morning with a huge bunch of freshly cut silverbeet, a handful of camomile flowers for tea, and a bunch of jerusalem artichokes to plant when we get home. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4053.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Artichokes" border="0" alt="Artichokes" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4053_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4055.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Rachel and her silverbeet" border="0" alt="Rachel and her silverbeet" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4055_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>A gentle climb took us to Timboon where we were persuaded to stop at an old whiskey distillery that had been converted to a swanky restaurant. </p> <p>No sooner had we got back on the road than we were again persuaded to stop at a local cheese factory: The Mousetrap, run by a French cheese maker. During the cheese tasting we chatted to a lovely French couple living in Melbourne, Bruno and Marlene, who kindly offered to invite us for a drink. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4065.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Bruno and Marlene" border="0" alt="Bruno and Marlene" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4065_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4067.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Cheese tasting" border="0" alt="Cheese tasting" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RobePortCampbell_751D/IMG_4067_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>Bursting at the seams from so much food we struggled up a small incline before making our way back to the coast, excited as we knew that some of the worlds most dramatic coastal scenery was just around the corner.</p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-66164574379098550082011-09-05T01:02:00.001-07:002011-09-08T18:46:52.779-07:00Cruising the Coorong<p><em>Adelaide – Robe</em></p> <p>Pouring over maps, we came to the realization that there was simply no way of getting out of Adelaide without a major hill climb. Eventually we picked a quiet route with a fairly gentle 500m climb leading us east towards the Murray River. </p> <p>The morning of our departure presented us with the worst weather we had had in our entire 17 days in Adelaide: rain and wind. Raincoats and lights on, we said goodbye to our friends and headed down to the river. We followed the bike path along the river for about 12km out of the city, then hopped on to Gorge Road to follow a misty river valley up into the mountains. <span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AdelaideWarrnambol_13049/IMG_3891.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Waterfall" border="0" alt="Waterfall" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AdelaideWarrnambol_13049/IMG_3891_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AdelaideWarrnambol_13049/IMG_3903.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="River valley" border="0" alt="River valley" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AdelaideWarrnambol_13049/IMG_3903_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>In the afternoon, the weather cleared and we coasted all the way downhill to the Murray River where we must have looked so tired that the owners of Mannum campsite gave us a senior’s discount – not bad for a couple of 32 year olds!</p> <p>The following day began with sunshine and blue sky, and we expected an easy day of 70km. But as soon as we left the campsite, the winds picked up and clouds came over again. Stormy gusts blew us sideways off the road as birds struggled in vein to fly. </p> <p>A friendly cafe offered a welcome rest from the rain and cold stormy weather. When we finally made it to the campsite at Wellington, it was already dark, our “easy day” having turned into one of the hardest of our journey through Australia. </p> <p>With that in mind, we didn’t think twice when presented with the option of renting a cabin for the night ($25) instead of camping ($19). <br /> <br /><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AdelaideWarrnambol_13049/IMG_3936.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Farm shed" border="0" alt="Farm shed" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AdelaideWarrnambol_13049/IMG_3936_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="367" /></a> </p> <p>With persistent headwinds our progress was slow the following day and we only made it as far as Meningie, a small town on the edge of the Coorong wetlands. We camped next to a lake and spent a relaxing afternoon watching pelicans.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AdelaideWarrnambol_13049/IMG_3914.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Pelicans" border="0" alt="Pelicans" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AdelaideWarrnambol_13049/IMG_3914_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AdelaideWarrnambol_13049/IMG_3906.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Wild flower" border="0" alt="Wild flower" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AdelaideWarrnambol_13049/IMG_3906_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>The Coorong is a 145km long national park emcompassing the Younghusband Peninsula. The lagoon landscape is a haven for birds, and we spotted dozens of pelicans during our cycling day. </p> <p>Just as we were contemplating how suitable the Coorong wildflowers would be for making honey, we came across a little “buy honey here” sign pointing down a driveway. A self-service fridge revealed tubs of local honey. The only available size came in 1kg pots. </p> <p>“Freddie, I just have to buy this honey,” Guy insisted, reminding her of his dream to one day become a beekeeper himself. “Otherwise I will wonder for the rest of my life how it would have tasted.”</p> <p>On completion of the purchase, Freddie somehow found herself with a 1kg tub of honey swinging from her handlebars while Guy took to the road unencumbered. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AdelaideWarrnambol_13049/IMG_3925.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Honey purchase" border="0" alt="Honey purchase" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AdelaideWarrnambol_13049/IMG_3925_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="492" /></a> </p> <p>The Coorong national park offered many opportunities for wild camping. Bushland had replaced the ever present fenced-off farmland, and we were reminded of the Outback up North when we easily found a wild camp spot. It was, however, quite muddy – a haven for mosquitoes. </p> <p>In the morning, a cyclist’s dream came true: the wind had switched and we were blessed with a ferocious tailwind. We had only planned to ride to Kingston, 70km away. When we arrived there at lunchtime, we decided to push on to Robe, making it a 120km day. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AdelaideWarrnambol_13049/IMG_3941.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Campsite in Robe" border="0" alt="Campsite in Robe" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AdelaideWarrnambol_13049/IMG_3941_thumb.jpg" width="354" height="214" /></a>&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AdelaideWarrnambol_13049/IMG_3949.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Robe harbour" border="0" alt="Robe harbour" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AdelaideWarrnambol_13049/IMG_3949_thumb.jpg" width="284" height="214" /></a> </p> <p>Robe is a lovely little fishing village, popular with tourists from both Melbourne and Adelaide. However, on a Sunday afternoon in mid winter, most of the town was closed, including the supermarket. The caravan park was unmanned, so we strolled around and found a lovely pitch on a slopey grass ledge with a 180° sea view. </p> <p>The following day we had a stroll around the village enjoying the beautiful weather and 20°C sunshine. Not bad for a winter day!</p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-70540124331349354492011-08-28T23:22:00.001-07:002011-09-05T03:04:18.701-07:00Recharging in Adelaide<p><em>Adelaide</em></p> <p>As the second batch of home made pumpkin scones arrived on the table Jenny gently enquired:</p> <p>“So, how long are you guys planning to stay for?”</p> <p>Inhaling his 6th scone, Guy said between mouthfuls:</p> <p>“Ohh about 4 days, we should be good to go by then.” </p> <p>No one said anything, Freddie glanced outside from the comforts of the indoors, the wind howling in the trees. She was thinking what everyone was thinking: 4 days was was just the tip of the iceberg.<span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> <p>Guy’s sister Justine flew out from Melbourne to visit for a few days, and Paul and Jenny graciously offered for her to stay in their house too. It was fantastic to see her again after such a long time. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3818.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Paul, Jenny, Justine, Freddie and Guy" border="0" alt="Paul, Jenny, Justine, Freddie and Guy" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3818_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="492" /></a> </p> <p>Despite it being the middle of winter, we were lucky to have several days of gorgeous sunny weather, perfect winery touring weather so we made the most of it by visiting some of Paul and Jenny’s favourite spots in the Adelaide Hills, including Hahndorf, a village that was settled by German Lutherans, most of whom had arrived by ship from Hamburg in 1838. These early migrants began the tradition of winemaking in the Adelaide Hills and the Barossa Valley. </p> <p>&#160;<a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3798.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Wine cellar" border="0" alt="Wine cellar" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3798_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3791.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="German heritage in Hahndorf" border="0" alt="German heritage in Hahndorf" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3791_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a>&#160; </p> <p>We took a stroll along the coast and a visit to the beachside suburb of Glenelg, and though it was winter it was still warm enough for shorts and t-shirts, even children were playing in the shallows. <br /> <br /><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3831.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Coastal walk" border="0" alt="Coastal walk" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3831_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3825.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Coast in Adelaide" border="0" alt="Coast in Adelaide" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3825_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a></p> <p>Not only is Adelaide a superb place for wine but its fertile lands are abundant with fantastic fresh produce so we headed to the Central Market where the city’s passion for food comes alive. We admired handmade soaps, enjoyed freshly roasted coffee and had some of the best dates since leaving Iran. A Sunday morning trip to Gepps Cross market saw us coming home with a car boot full of fresh fruit and vegetables, purchased in bulk from a variety of specialist vendors. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3862.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Koala" border="0" alt="Koala" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3862_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3814.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Picnic - note the bandicoot under the table" border="0" alt="Picnic - note the bandicoot under the table" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3814_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>Paul and Jenny had promised to fatten us up after our trip through the Outback, and they did not let us down. We were bombarded by such delectable dishes such as home made pizzas, roast chicken, huge pots of soup, curries, golden syrup dumplings and a fresh loaf of home made bread almost every morning. </p> <p>We also had access to their car so we took the opportunity to drive back up to the Barossa Valley for some wine tasting. Justine loves the odd drop of wine and enjoyed comparing the Barossa wines with her local drops from the Bellarine and Mornington peninsulas. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3843.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Guy and sister Justine" border="0" alt="Guy and sister Justine" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3843_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3845.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Jams and chutneys" border="0" alt="Jams and chutneys" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3845_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>Of course our wine tasting expeditions resulted in a few purchases, a stretch for any cycle tourer’s budget. Even here Paul had a solution for us: he had arranged some work for Guy! </p> <p>Not having seen the inside of an office for 15 months, Guy understandably felt a little apprehensive, but Paul soon put him at ease and lent him some clothes and a shaver.&#160; At the same time, a few UK contacts also got in touch with Guy about some work, and Freddie was able to work on an online marketing project and a translation. By the end of our stay, our coffers were a little more replenished, which took some stress off our minds as we had begun to worry about our depleted bank balance.</p> <p>After Justine had returned back to Melbourne, Paul’s sister Melissa came to stay as she had a broken foot and needed some help with meals and shopping, and Paul’s parents came over for dinner before they jetted off on a trip to the US. </p> <p>We also met Jenny’s parents, Tony and Janet, who are great travellers and had done the overland hippie trail to Europe in the 1970s. When Paul and Jenny went away for a weekend with friends, Jenny’s parents took us out for a hike to Mount Lofty to spot koalas (we saw 17!) and enjoy the first hints of spring in the air. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3883.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Dumpling competition" border="0" alt="Dumpling competition" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3883_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3888.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Rod having a ride on Kiwi" border="0" alt="Rod having a ride on Kiwi" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/Adelaide_E633/IMG_3888_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>On the bike front, we had some maintenance to do. We completed an oil change, which has to be done every 5000km for the <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/kit_reviews/rohloff_speed_hub.aspx" target="_blank">Rohloff hub</a>. After using them for 13,000km since Istanbul, we also swapped our <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/kit_reviews/schwalbe_mararthon_XR_tyres.aspx" target="_blank">Schwalbe Marathon XR tyres</a> out. <a href="http://www.panaracer.com" target="_blank">Panaracer</a> had put us in touch with their local distributor, <a href="http://bikesportz.com.au/" target="_blank">Bike Sportz</a>, who had generously agreed to supply us with new Panaracer T-Serve tyres to test. These tyres were much more lightweight than the Marathons and would be well suited to the relatively smooth tarmac roads we were expecting on our way home.&#160; </p> <p>The other item we urgently needed to repair was the zippers on Boris, our tent. With the help of Travelling Two’s <a href="http://travellingtwo.com/shop/ebooks/biketouringguide" target="_blank">Bike Touring Survival Guide</a> we had figured out that we didn’t actually need to replace the zippers themselves, but just the sliders. It sounded like an easy job, but after spending several days trying to hunt down the correct sliders, we gave up. We had talked to craft shops, outdoor shops, had called YKK itself and visited their distributor, had searched for Australian online shops, but no luck: nobody stocked the zipper sliders we were looking for. In the end we just applied a quick fix by gently squeezing the sliders with a pair of pliers to tighten them. Hopefully this will get us home. </p> <p>With that in mind, we were quite surprised to read that our friends <a href="http://abikejourney.blogspot.com/2010/09/cappadocia-and-beyond.html" target="_blank">Justin and Emma</a> had managed to find a similar zipper for their Hilleberg tent <a href="http://www.rolling-tales.com/blog/2011/08/12/conquering-the-boss-road/738/" target="_blank">in a market in Ulan Bator, Mongolia</a>! If anyone reading this has contacts in the zipper world, we would be very grateful for any pointers on how to obtain some size 5 metal YKK spiral zipper sliders, double sided.</p> <p>With all the excitement, socialising, working and eating, 17 wonderful days had passed and it was time for us to hit the road again or apply for official residency in Adelaide (which we considered!). <br /> <br />Paul &amp; Jenny, thank you!</p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-59595968228899590932011-08-14T23:44:00.001-07:002011-08-14T23:44:00.773-07:0017,000 km Photo<p>Cycling through the Barossa Valley wine region, we noticed a small creek called Jacob’s Creek. Looking around we saw the famous winery just around the bend. It was too early for the flashy visitor’s centre to open, so we took the opportunity to do a few star jumps instead.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/17000kmPhoto_E604/IMG_3762.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="17000km photo" border="0" alt="17000km photo" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/17000kmPhoto_E604/IMG_3762_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="370" /></a><span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-46308645151760829642011-08-11T02:32:00.001-07:002011-08-28T23:26:39.701-07:00Rolling Vineyards<p><em>Port Augusta – Adelaide</em></p> <p>After a rest day in Port Augusta we were soon on our way again, eager to reach Adelaide and see our friends Paul and Jenny as well as Guy’s sister Justine who was planning to fly over from Melbourne for a quick visit. </p> <p>An easier-than-expected 500m climb saw us enter the southern Flinders Ranges, South Australia’s largest mountain range. After spending so much time in the flat centre of Australia, it felt strange to be surrounded by rolling green pastures.<span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3650.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Entering the Flinder Ranges" border="0" alt="Entering the Flinder Ranges" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3650_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="394" /></a> </p> <p>In the afternoon we dropped down into a valley a little reminiscent of the English countryside and soon reached our destination for the day, the historic town of Melrose, one of the oldest towns in the Flinders Ranges. When it was opened in 1848, the police station here was responsible for the largest police district in the world, an area extending all the way north to the Timor Sea. This huge district was covered by only one constable, two troopers and an Aboriginal tracker. <br /> <br /><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3652.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Climb" border="0" alt="Climb" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3652_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a>&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3680.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="School bus" border="0" alt="School bus" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3680_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>As we now regularly passed villages, shops and cafes and enjoyed the easy access to food and good drinking water we realised the hard “k’s” were over. Most towns had a campsite, and these were very well equipped with indoor camp kitchens. </p> <p>Our daily cycling distance decreased as the frequency of coffee shops and bakeries increased, reminding us of our days <a href="http://abikejourney.blogspot.com/2010/06/via-danubia.html" target="_blank">cycling the Danube</a>. <br /> <br /><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3659.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Blacksmith Shop" border="0" alt="Blacksmith Shop" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3659_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="394" /></a></p> <p>Passing through a little village we spotted a fully loaded touring bike parked on the curb with a cardboard “For Sale” sign hanging off the cross bar. Just as we were pondering what had happened to the owner, a door opened and we were greeted by a friendly man named Rick, who explained his leg pain had caused him to stop cycling. He immediately invited us for a cup of tea and we quickly accepted, pushing our bikes into his living room. </p> <p>Only 7km later, we came past the Old Stone Hut Bakery, which is quite famous for its pies and coffee. Of course we could not resist and went in for another cuppa!</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3668.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Bike for sale" border="0" alt="Bike for sale" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3668_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3678b.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Bakery" border="0" alt="Bakery" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3678b_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>We camped in Gladstone and then cycled on to Clare, entering the famous northern wine regions of the Adelaide area. The Clare Valley is known for its Riesling which seems to prefer cooler temperatures – good for the wine, bad for tent camping. </p> <p>We were excited to cycle the Riesling Trail, a dedicated bicycle path between Clare and Auburn. The ride was lovely, though of course in the middle of winter the vineyards were looking a little bare. We followed the extension of the Riesling Trail, the aptly named Rattler Trail, which unfortunately was not well maintained and had suffered a lot as a result of the winter rains. </p> <p>Surprisingly, we did not see a single other cyclist during the entire 40km we spent on a dedicated bike path.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3711.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Rattler trail" border="0" alt="Rattler trail" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3711_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3699.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Bluetongue lizard" border="0" alt="Bluetongue lizard" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3699_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>Following a long climb in the late afternoon, we descended into a lush valley and spent the night in Kapunda where it was noticeably warmer than in Clare. </p> <p>We now entered the heart of the Barossa Valley - arguably one of the world’s great wine regions producing 21% of Australia’s wine, with a focus on big fruity reds. With our grubby looks we decided to focus on the wineries another day, perhaps a day trip from Adelaide once we have had a chance to make ourselves more socially acceptable</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3739.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Jacobs Creek" border="0" alt="Jacobs Creek" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3739_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3736.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Barossa Valley" border="0" alt="Barossa Valley" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3736_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>Tanunda is the main town in the Barossa Valley and holds a very special place in our hearts. It was here we had our 75th consecutive and final night of non stop camping! With any luck tomorrow night would see us sleeping in a real house, with real beds. We were pretty excited.</p> <p>With the thought of a warm bed nothing could ruin our day, well almost nothing. We had mapped out a quiet route off the main roads but had failed to check the altitude profile. The climbs weren’t big but they were steep. Freddie even resorted to pushing her bike, which had not happened since we left Europe a year ago. We did not want to be late as we knew our friends were waiting for us, so we pushed hard and were relieved when we finally reached the river Torrens, which led us right into the heart of Adelaide along a beautiful bicycle path. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3703.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Horses" border="0" alt="Horses" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3703_thumb_3.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3774.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Antiques" border="0" alt="Antiques" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/PortAugustaAdelaide_DA07/IMG_3774_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>Last time we had seen Paul and Jenny, we had been “young professionals” working in London, so they looked a little surprised at how grubby we were and immediately lent us some of their clothes so that we could look a little more presentable during our time in the city. </p> <p>We had been looking forward to this moment ever since leaving Darwin, and it was great to see our friends again even if they joked about making us camp in their backyard. Our timing was perfect as they had just completed their house renovations, so the bikes were parked in the garage and we were issued with our own bedroom and revived with home made scones and calzone and a drop of red from their healthy looking wine rack. </p> <p>Having a shower in a warm room and with an adult size fluffy white towels was a pleasure we had not enjoyed for a long time. And the bed! Oh, the bed. Ironically we couldn’t sleep at all the first night as the bed was so soft and comfortable, luckily it was only temporarily and we were soon sleeping like babies. </p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-50867677136008561322011-08-06T21:33:00.001-07:002011-08-11T02:37:40.927-07:00Opal Mines and Rocket Ranges<p><em>Coober Pedy – Port Augusta</em></p> <p>According to our guide book when you arrive in Coober Pedy “you might think you’ve arrived in a post-apocalyptic shithole.” A little harsh perhaps but there is no doubt it is a unique setting packed full of interesting people with only one thing on their mind: Opal.<span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> <p>With 80% of its residents living in underground dugout homes to escape the heat, and mining equipment littering its dusty streets, Coober Pedy certainly felt a little surreal. Opal fever has seen fortune seekers come from 44 different countries for the past 100 years so it actually feels quite cosmopolitan.</p> <p>It all started in 1915 when 14 year old Willie Hutchison disobeyed the strict orders of his father, James Hutchison, the leader of a gold prospecting expedition. The party had run out of water amidst the worst draught South Australia had ever experienced. While the adults went in search of a water source, young Willie had been left in charge of tending the campfire. His father quickly forgave him his disobedience when, on his return, Willie had found not only a bag full of loose opals, but also a water hole in the vicinity. </p> <p>Thanks to Willie, miners have been flooding to Coober Pedy ever since, staking their claims, digging and blasting shafts in the sandstone hoping to uncover their fortune. So how much does the average miner make? A local summed it up nicely:</p> <p>“Well, take my mate, he found $50,000 worth of opal in a single day. The next 2 years he spent his days toiling away underground for the total sum of $100.”</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3481.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Coober Pedy" border="0" alt="Coober Pedy" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3481_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3480.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Tunneling machine" border="0" alt="Tunneling machine" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3480_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>As the town is located in an unforgiving environment, much effort is required to provide power and water for its inhabitant as well as for visiting tourists. The town water comes from an artesian bore and has to be desalinated and filtered to make it drinkable. A diesel generator provides power for the town, making electricity quite expensive.</p> <p>There is plenty to explore and we really enjoyed the Old Timers mine, a mine that was rediscovered when a dugout home was being built. It was subsequently turned into a tourist attraction and during the process they found over $100,000 worth of opal that the original miners had missed by just a few feet.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3473.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Space ship" border="0" alt="Space ship" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3473_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3485.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="TVs" border="0" alt="TVs" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3485_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>The town is littered with unusual artefacts, walking around your never really know what you might stumble across, hopefully not a shaft! Outside a hotel we came across a spaceship that seemed to have crashlanded just meters from the entrance. It turned out to be an old movie prop from the film Pitch Black. At the entrance of a mine we found old TV sets carefully placed as if they were regularly used.</p> <p>During the three days we spent in Coober Pedy it did not stop raining, converting the usually sunparched and dusty streets into a muddy sludge. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3450.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="No explosives in theatre" border="0" alt="No explosives in theatre" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3450_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3452.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Miners car" border="0" alt="Miners car" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3452_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>Leaving Coober Pedy was a little daunting as we had the longest stretch of “nothingness” on our entire trip to cover: 260km without a single human dwelling. Luckily we had found out from fellow campers that there were two water tanks on this stretch, reducing our need to carry large amounts of water. </p> <p>Trees do not grow naturally in the Coober Pedy area, and the landscape was quite devoid of features. When looking closely however, we still found stunning wild flowers covering the land, grateful for the recent rains. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3596.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Pretty flower" border="0" alt="Pretty flower" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3596_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3514.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Sturt Desert Pea" border="0" alt="Sturt Desert Pea" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3514_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>We were now cyling trough the Woomera Military Exclusion Zone, which meant no deviating off the road was allowed. With the prohibited area being nearly the size of England, it took us several days to cross it.</p> <p>Arriving at the first water tank one of our worst fears came true; it was empty. Luckily there was a small tank for hand washing near the toilets so over the course of half an hour we managed to drain out just enough to get by. The water tanks in South Australia are fed by rainwater running off the roofs of picnic areas, making the water supply less reliable and more likely to be contaminated than the tanks in the Northern Territory. As a result we have started filtering our water again.</p> <p>On our second night out of Coober Pedy, as we wheeled the bikes into the bush for another wild camp we realised we had just walked through a field of thorns. On closer inspection we discovered dozens of spiky thorns embedded into our tyres. We spent over an hour taking the little pricks out of our tyres and much of the next morning carrying our kit to the road and doing further checks. <br /> <br /><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3520.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Thorns in tyres" border="0" alt="Thorns in tyres" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3520_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3528.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="A naughty thorn" border="0" alt="A naughty thorn" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3528_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>The continuous effort of cycling into the wind was taking its toll, and Guy suffered from bad knee pain, reducing his speed to a crawl. We barely managed 70km a day now as we were cycling so slowly, and even painkillers did not relieve his discomfort. </p> <p>At camp, we had seen some emu footprints. We hadn’t seen any wild emus yet and were just contemplating the fact that emus were extremely shy animals when we spotted a group of three adults with about a dozen baby emus in a field near Glendambo, the first roadhouse after Coober Pedy. The emu is the second-largest bird in the world after the ostrich, and over the coming days we saw quite a few of them. Despite their size, they usually took flight as soon as they spotted us.&#160; </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3532.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Emu footprints" border="0" alt="Emu footprints" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3532_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3594.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Emu" border="0" alt="Emu" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3594_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>After three days of pure outback, we felt like we had arrived back in civilisation when we pulled into Glendambo roadhouse. It was quite exciting to see a human dwelling again, even though it was just a humble fuel station and motel.</p> <p>When we left Glendambo in the morning, we could see a road train in our rear view mirrors. Oddly, it was flashing its lights and pulling over just behind us. We soon realised it was our buddy, Craig. We had met him a week earlier at a roadhouse. He was interested to know more about our ride and perhaps check on our mental health. We refused to accept his offer of donating his lunch to us (yum, lasagne!) but accepted some spring water which was a step up from our salty bore water. </p> <p>Guy’s knee pain was no better and we were pretty relieved when we finally reached Lake Hart right on sunset. This is usually a dried out salt lake, but thanks to the recent rains it had water in it and was amazingly beautiful. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3565.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Guy with Craig" border="0" alt="Guy with Craig" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3565_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3581.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Camping at Lake Hart" border="0" alt="Camping at Lake Hart" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3581_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>The following morning we passed one of the biggest salt lakes in the state often used by speed enthusiasts intent on breaking their necks and/or land speed records. Much of central Australia used to be covered by a vast inland sea, which is much easier to imagine once you have seen these huge salt lakes. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3585.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Salt lake" border="0" alt="Salt lake" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3585_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="370" /></a> </p> <p>Five days after leaving Coober Pedy, we arrived in the settlement of Woomera. This village had been established in 1947 to support the Woomera Rocket Range. After WW2, the British had been looking for a place to test new weapons, rockets and missiles. The Woomera region had been chosen and was used for decades by British, Australian and American forces to experiment with top secret military equipment. The visitors center has a great exhibit detailing the role of Woomera´s past and present but it was disappointing that there was no mention of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_nuclear_tests_at_Maralinga" target="_blank">devastating nuclear tests that occured in the late 1950´s</a>, contaminating the local aboriginal communities and inflicting great suffering on the servicemen working in the area completly unprotected. </p> <p>The village of Woomera itself had been off-limits to the public until 1982. It is still used by the military and is an oddly artificial place with a campsite, a supermarket and a couple of museums. We took a day off here to let Guy’s knee recover. <br /> <br /><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3617.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Rocket park at Woomera" border="0" alt="Rocket park at Woomera" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3617_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3606.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Rocket" border="0" alt="Rocket" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3606_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>The road south of Woomera was very busy with lots of road trains and school holiday traffic. The amount of roadkill on this stretch was the worst we have ever encountered: every hundred metres or so the stench of a dead kangaroo or a rotting cow filled the air and this made us think (rather morbidly) about our road kill list to date. We thought we might share it with you. Over the last 14 months we have seen dead horses, pigs, cows, camels, kangaroos, wallabies, snakes, sheep, foxes, mice, dingoes, dogs, frogs, cats, monitor lizards, hedge hogs, echidna and a dozen or so varieties of birds. Sometimes cycling is not for the faint-hearted!</p> <p>On a more positive note, we were enjoying a lovely tailwind and beautiful sunshine and found another great camp spot on our last night in the Outback. There is something about camping out here that makes you feel really connected with nature. Sitting around a cosy fire under a million stars was a natural part of our ancestor’s life but is such a rare experience nowadays.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3638.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Port Augusta" border="0" alt="Port Augusta" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/CooberPedyPortAugusta_E92E/IMG_3638_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="343" /></a> </p> <p>Finally after 3,600km of riding we arrived at the sea (the top of the Spencer Gulf), officially marking the end of our time in the Outback. In only one week’s time we would be in Adelaide, staying with our friends Paul and Jenny, and boy were we looking forward to some creature comforts.</p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-38551092508707662122011-07-20T20:11:00.001-07:002011-07-20T20:11:52.882-07:0016,000 km Photo<p>Somewhere about a day’s ride before Coober Pedy we watched our 16,000th kilometre tick by on our bike computers. Coober Pedy is known to be Australia’s hottest place where temperatures reach over 50°C in summer and locals live in underground houses to beat the heat. When we arrived, the temperature was 8°C and the storm clouds were just waiting to burst.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/16000kmPhoto_A478/16000km.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="16000km" border="0" alt="16000km" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/16000kmPhoto_A478/16000km_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="492" /></a><span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-57424334856488055792011-07-20T20:04:00.001-07:002011-07-20T20:04:29.692-07:00The Wet and Wintery “Arid Region”<p><em>Uluru – Coober Pedy</em></p> <p>Leaving Yulara behind we set off one rainy morning to cycle towards Coober Pedy, some 740km away. To our delight, the winds had switched direction since we arrived and we had a tailwind again, this time pushing us eastwards and away from the still visible landmark of Uluru. </p> <p>For weeks we had been hearing from other campers that the epicentre of the current mouse plague was around Erldunda, the area we were heading towards. Mice had already gnawed several holes into our panniers and we were tired of the additional hassle to make our camp mouse proof, so we devised a new strategy to get us through this area without any more damage: we would wild camp every night. We have found the mice in campsites much more aggressive as they are accustomed to eating camper’s foods, whereas the mice out in the bush are still curious but not as desperate to eat into our supplies. </p> <p>The nights were very cold and we often found a layer of frost on our kit in the morning, making it quite uncomfortable to peel away the damp sleeping bag and take off three layers of merino wool and fleece to put our cycling clothes on. During breakfast, we waited for the sun to appear above the horizon, warming us up a little and thawing the ice on our gear. It is usually 9am by the time we wheel the bikes out from our hidden bush camp and back onto the road, much to the astonishment of passing traffic. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/UlaratoCooberPedy_EE67/IMG_3357.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Sunset" border="0" alt="Sunset" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/UlaratoCooberPedy_EE67/IMG_3357_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="370" /></a> </p> <p>After a couple of days cycling, the terrain flattened out, allowing an unimpeded view of the vast horizons. By our third day on the road the winds had turned again and, as usual, we were battling a relentless headwind. In the afternoon we reached Erldunda Roadhouse and the Stuart Highway. This was the end of our 1,000km detour taking in Kings Canyon and Uluru, and we were happy to finally make some progress south. </p> <p>At Erldunda we paid for a shower at the campsite after chatting to some guys from New York doing a documentary on camels in the outback. We pushed on to find a bush camp a little further on. Patience was required until the fence retreated a little and we were able to duck behind a rise, only 10m from the road but well hidden from view. We woke up to find a beautiful peach coloured sunrise topped off with a double rainbow arching across the western sky. </p> <p>Unfortunately the skies soon darkened and driving rain ensured lasting all day. At only 8°C this was a real slog and it seemed our tyres were glued to the tarmac, requiring a huge effort to keep them moving along. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/UlaratoCooberPedy_EE67/IMG_3370.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Dark clouds" border="0" alt="Dark clouds" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/UlaratoCooberPedy_EE67/IMG_3370_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="394" /></a> </p> <p>Passing the turnoff to a cattle station, we were amazed by the fact that the homestead was a full 60km beyond the entrance gate. The mailbox of course was located on the Stuart Highway, making life easier for the postman but requiring a 120km return trip for the residents to pick up their mail!</p> <p>We camped just before the South Australian border and reached the rest area at the border the following morning. After spending nearly two months exploring the Northern Territory and its natural wonders we were excited to reach the next state.&#160; </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/UlaratoCooberPedy_EE67/IMG_3378.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="South Australian border" border="0" alt="South Australian border" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/UlaratoCooberPedy_EE67/IMG_3378_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="394" /></a> </p> <p>While cycling we saw many mice in the fields near the road as well as hundreds of dead mice flattened on the highway. As expected, the mice still came to visit us every night, climbing up on the tent, rustling around and pulling at our panniers, stealing our valuable sleep but not doing any real damage. The term “quiet as a mouse” really takes on a different meaning when you are kept up by them every night! </p> <p><font color="#333333">On our sixth day of cycling the wind finally died down and the sun came out, lifting our spirits. As we pedalled through the</font><font color="#333333"> wide open spaces, the sun on our backs, tunes pumping from our Ipods and legs spinning effortlessly we could not think of a better place to be.</font></p> <p>Marla Roadhouse had the benefit of a decent shop and a good campsite, giving us the opportunity for a rest day. Our day off was spent, as usual, with doing the laundry, some bike maintenance, restocking on food, eating a lot and blogging a little. </p> <p>Leaving Marla, we were amazed by the unusual sight of flooded plains, offering a haven for birds following the recent rains.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/UlaratoCooberPedy_EE67/IMG_3400.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Flooded desert" border="0" alt="Flooded desert" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/UlaratoCooberPedy_EE67/IMG_3400_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="394" /></a> </p> <p>Another day of battling the winds saw us trudging along at 10km per hour, one eye on the road, the other on the bike computer impatiently watching the kilometres accumulate. Cycling at this snail’s pace made us acutely aware of the vast landscape we were trying to traverse. We were such tiny dots crawling along in this vast continent, making our endeavour to reach the southern coast seem almost impossible. </p> <p>Filling up with water at a rest area, we met a lovely elderly couple, John and Gwen, who invited us into their caravan to eat hot minestrone soup and pancakes. They had just picked a beautiful bunch of wild flowers from near the rest area and were marvelling at the lush vegetation as they remembered this area from previous visits as being completely devoid of life. </p> <p>Leaving the cosy caravan behind, we only travelled for a few more kilometres before we found a bush camp spot where the ground was covered in a carpet of tiny yellow, pink and blue wild flowers. Just as we enjoyed the blooming desert, so did the birds. Tiny finches nested in a nearby bush, a white owl and later a majestic eagle swept by, a flock of screeching cockatoos circled around our tent and several crows loudly commented on our activities from nearby mulga trees. </p> <p>We had really hoped for some more warm weather before we reached the dreary southern winter, but in the morning, threatening grey clouds covered the skies again and another cold day ensued. Bundled up in fleeces, merino wool, windproof jackets and overshoes, gloves and hoods we pushed on. Being cold and tired never makes for happy moods and our tempers flared up over lunch, resulting in us cycling apart for the next 20km before we reunited our forces to beat our common enemy, the wind.</p> <p>The landscape around Coober Pedy is famous for being harsh and barren, but the current cover of green makes it appear a little more gentle, with flat green and brown pastures stretching as far as the eye can see.</p> <p>Beneath this unassuming landscape lie 90% of the world’s opal reserves. As we came closer to the opal town of Coober Pedy, we began noticing hundreds of large white and pink ant hills where mining was taking place. Road signs warned visitors of unmarked mine shafts around the area. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/UlaratoCooberPedy_EE67/IMG_3482.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Danger sign" border="0" alt="Danger sign" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/UlaratoCooberPedy_EE67/IMG_3482_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/UlaratoCooberPedy_EE67/IMG_3432.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Opal mines" border="0" alt="Opal mines" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/UlaratoCooberPedy_EE67/IMG_3432_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>Arriving in town where every second home seems to have some rusting mining relic in its front yard was a little surreal as there are even active mines within the town itself, and many houses, businesses and even churches are built underground, often by repurposing disused mines. In fact, the name “Coober Pedy” comes from the Aboriginal word for “White Man in a Hole”. This promised to be a fascinating place worth a little exploration. <span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-37093166433707068302011-07-14T04:22:00.001-07:002011-07-20T20:16:25.399-07:00Round The Rock by Bicycle<p><em>Kings Canyon - Uluru</em></p> <p>After 5 days of cycling with no food resupply we were running on empty so we were hoping for a general store at the Kings Canyon Resort. Unfortunately what greeted us was just a depleted fuel station shop. It was still another 5 days until our next proper supermarket so we made do with an odd assortment of tinned food.</p> <p>Setting up camp in the late afternoon admiring the escarpment of the George Gill range our peace was soon disturbed as we were swopped on by some of the local birdlife intent on taking the bread from our plates. Signs around the camp warned of dingo activity and we watched closely as they strolled freely amongst the campers looking for any scraps they could find. To top it off we were alerted to the presence of mice as they scurried over our canvas whilst we cooked the evening meal. With all this activity we decided all food should be removed from the tent so we hoisted our supplies into the nearest tree, much to the amusement of our fellow campers.<span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3190.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Curious mouse" border="0" alt="Curious mouse" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3190_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3069.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Food pannier in a tree" border="0" alt="Food pannier in a tree" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3069_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>After a day off recovering from our adventures on the <font color="#ff0000"><a href="http://abikejourney.blogspot.com/2011/07/cycling-mereenie-loop.html" target="_blank">Mereenie Loop</a></font> we packed up and cycled out to Kings Canyon for the 6km rim walk. The first section was the toughest and aptly named Heart Attack Hill. Once over the steep incline the track meanders around the rim of the canyon at times coming right to the verge of the 100m high sheer cliff face.</p> <p>The walk weaves amongst obscure rock formations, dominated by beehive shaped domes that give the place the feeling of an ancient city. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3085.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Kings Canyon beehive domes" border="0" alt="Kings Canyon beehive domes" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3085_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="370" /></a>&#160; <br /> <br />The canyon hosts the largest variety of plant life in Central Australia, some going back to prehistoric times and at the head of the gorge is an area known as the Garden of Eden where a spring supports a small oasis and feeds a tranquil water pool. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3116.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Kings Canyon" border="0" alt="Kings Canyon" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3116_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3131.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Wild camp" border="0" alt="Wild camp" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3131_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>Back at the car park where we left the bikes we still had 40km to cycle to camp and wondered if the walk may have tired us out, but back on the bikes the legs effortlessly fell into the familiar rhythmic motion of cycling.</p> <p>Arriving at Kings Creek Station we refilled our water bottles for $1 per litre as the bore water has to be pumped from 5km away. An inspirational couple (The Conways) had purchased 800,000 hectares of arid land here, completely off grid and developed a successful cattle and tourism enterprise as well as a charity supporting education for local Aboriginal kids.</p> <p>The following morning after a bush camp just as we stopped to take a jumper off we noticed we were being watched by a magnificent wild horse. Word must have spread as one after another materialised from the bush. As we quietly cycled on they continued to watch us, then as we came within 50m they took off. We tried to stay with them, matching pace as the majestic horses galloped beside us. We thought maybe we had startled them but they continued on a parallel path, almost as if they were willing us on.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3144.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Wild horses" border="0" alt="Wild horses" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3144_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="394" /></a> </p> <p>Feeling a little exhausted after our race with the wild horses we had just wheeled around the corner when we were flagged down by Trish and Tony, a lovely couple we had met at the Kings Canyon Resort camp site. They offered us coffee and muffins, which we promptly accepted over a chin wag in their ultra comfortable caravan.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3153.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Trish and Tony" border="0" alt="Trish and Tony" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3153_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3156.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Freddie cycling" border="0" alt="Freddie cycling" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3156_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>That afternoon the wildlife fest continued with a dingo, pink and white galahs and 3 r<font color="#333333">ed kangaroos </font>all in the space of a few hours. We struck it lucky with one of the prettiest bush camps we have had on the trip, it really felt like we had walked into a manicured garden.</p> <p>The next morning we turned westbound onto the main road that took us all the way to Uluru. It felt a little wrong to be heading due west when home is south east Australia but this was a detour that had to be done.</p> <p>As we summited a crest later in the day a massive red rock rose from the plains. Mt Connor, often mistaken for Uluru steals the show somewhat as it accustoms you to these beautiful rock formations. We set up camp at the dusty Curtin Springs Roadhouse, about 80km from Uluru.&#160; </p> <p>When we took off from camp in the morning a very strange thing happened to us, TAIL WIND! We clamoured on our bikes and were soon hitting speeds of 35km/hr, we couldn’t believe our luck as we raced along the desert plains. Coming up over a small rise we got our first glimpse of Uluru. We were so excited we pulled over for an early lunch and climbed the nearest sand dune for a private one on one with the world’s most famous rock.&#160; <br /> <br />&#160;<a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3203.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Guy enjoying the view of Uluru" border="0" alt="Guy enjoying the view of Uluru" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3203_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="394" /></a> </p> <p>They don’t all live up to the hype, these “big sites” - but for us, sitting there on the dune with Uluru in sight having cycled such a long way to get there was a really unforgettable moment.</p> <p>The day only got better as we got word that our Kiwi 4WD buddies Andrew and Therese were still in Yulara sorting out a few administrative matters and they would hang around for another night if we could make it there in time.</p> <p>Rolling into Yulara, the small purpose built “town” that so cleverly camouflages itself within the bush that you hardly notice it was a delight for us as we knew there was a SUPERMARKET to raid with semi reasonable prices.&#160; </p> <p>After clearing out the supermarket we met Andrew and Therese at the campground and caught up on their 4WD travels. On the following day we cycled the 20km out to Uluru in the hope to bike around The Rock. A park ranger was pretty excited to see us on our bikes and being a cyclist himself he was keen to explain the best route to us. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3285.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Freddie at Uluru" border="0" alt="Freddie at Uluru" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3285_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="370" /></a> </p> <p>Uluru is amazing close up, it takes on a different form the closer you get to it, far from just a big clump of rock. We were amazed by the smooth swirling drifts of sandstone that give the rock a soothing texture. As it is a very spiritual place for the Aborigines there are numerous rock paintings and in some sections photography is prohibited. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3261.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Uluru flowers" border="0" alt="Uluru flowers" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3261_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3263.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Cycling around Uluru" border="0" alt="Cycling around Uluru" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3263_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a>&#160; <br /> <br />Again we were amazed by all the plant life in the area and during the wet season rains spill over the sides cascading down the smooth sandstone to fill tranquil little water holes around the base. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3274.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Dwarfed by Uluru" border="0" alt="Dwarfed by Uluru" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3274_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3280.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Uluru waterpool" border="0" alt="Uluru waterpool" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3280_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>The <em>Sorry Book</em> at the cultural centre caught our attention. It contains hundreds of admissions from people who have taken something from the area and all of a sudden have had a string of bad luck. The bad luck seems to coincide from the moment the item was taken, as a result stolen goods (such as lumps of rock) are often posted back with a sorry letter in hope they will be forgiven for their sins.</p> <p>The following day we made contact with Mark and Nadia, friends of Greg, the French cyclist we met in Alice Springs. They are tour guides working for a company taking school groups out to the bush to do workshops and cultural activities within the Aboriginal villages for 9 days at a time. They’d just returned from one trip and were due on the next one the following day. They kindly gave up their one day off to meet up for lunch. Afterwards they took us out for sunset on a dune with a fantastic view of Uluru followed by dinner at their house. They have done a fantastic cycle tour in Europe and Australia the previous year and will spend the summers not far from our new home in Victoria, so we hope to return the favour one day. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3302.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Freddie with Mark and Nadia" border="0" alt="Freddie with Mark and Nadia" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3302_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="394" /></a> </p> <p>Our final must do in the area was a visit to the Olgas (Kata Tjuta), a magnificent group of orange dome shaped rocks clustered together like a handful of marshmallows. Getting out to the Olgas&#160; is difficult if you don’t have access to a vehicle, as it’s a 110km round trip and a 3 hour walk. Enter Rachel and John, a couple from Victoria we met at camp. They offered for us to come with them, so we all piled into their car for the drive out and to do the stunning <em>Valley Of the Winds</em> walk that weaves its way through this surreal and beautiful landscape.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3339.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Kata Tjuta" border="0" alt="Kata Tjuta" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/KingsCanyontoUluru_CB06/IMG_3339_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="370" /></a> </p> <p>Back at camp we paid one final visit to the supermarket to stock up for our 6 day haul to Marla. Soon we would be reunited with our mate, the Stuart Highway and foe, the south east headwinds.</p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-80137692949618813042011-07-04T23:24:00.001-07:002011-07-04T23:24:24.202-07:0015,000 km Photo<p>Having just emerged from the Mereenie Loop and 140km of bone jolting corrugated dirt roads, we <br />were feeling good to be back on the smooth tarmac and averaging speeds in the double figures. We came to a conclusion that fully loaded touring and rough dirt roads are a bad combination.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/15000kmPhoto_CB14/IMG_3140.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="15000km photo" border="0" alt="15000km photo" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/15000kmPhoto_CB14/IMG_3140_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="492" /></a><span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-84141572516563046562011-07-04T23:00:00.001-07:002011-07-04T23:00:46.069-07:00Cycling the Mereenie Loop<p><em>Alice Springs – Kings Canyon</em></p> <p>There are two options to travel from Alice Springs to Uluru, or “The Rock”: the most popular option is to stay on a tarmac road, then backtrack to the highway with an optional detour to Kings Canyon. The other option is to take the Mereenie Loop road. This is a more scenic 700km route to Uluru taking in Kings Canyon and minimising the amount of backtracking. </p> <p>The catch is that the Mereenie Loop encompasses a 140km unsealed section known for its rough corrugations and sandy creek crossings, really just suitable for 4WD vehicles. This section lies in the midst of a 230km gap between water points, which would take us about 3 days of cycling to cover. As the Mereenie Loop is located on Aboriginal land, a permit is required to travel on the road, and camping is not allowed.&#160; </p> <p><em>“The dirt road is often soft and slow with the occasional 200m stretch of sand and […] kilometres of bone jolting, filling loosening, cobblestones. Ugg.”</em>&#160; - <a href="http://www.cycletrailsaustralia.com/2_trails/mereenie-loop-nt" target="_blank">Cycle Trails Australia</a></p> <p><em>“You’ll need tyres ten times as thick as that. It’s sandy and you’ll probably have to walk a lot of it. You’d be lucky to do 20km per day.”</em> - Grey Nomad, having just completed the Mereenie Loop in his 4WD</p> <p>Taking into consideration all the pros and cons of the two roads, we made the sensible decision to stick to the tarmac. So we stocked up on food for the 5 days cycling we thought it might take us to get to Uluru, swapped our worn rear tires for new, slicker and thinner tyres suitable for the tarmac roads, and packed our bags. We were perfectly happy until we started chatting to a young German traveller who told us he had just driven the Mereenie Loop in a borrowed 2WD car and thought it would be doable by bicycle. </p> <p>With the full intention of staying on the tarmac, we went to sleep. </p> <p>8 hours later, Guy was woken up by Freddie whispering: “Guy, are you awake? I think we’re making a terrible mistake. What will we think later, say next year, when we look back and realise we took the easier option and missed out on Kings Canyon? Sure, the Mereenie Loop will be much harder, and maybe we won’t make it, but it’s so much more interesting. Shouldn’t we at least try?”</p> <p>“Ok”, Guy mumbled and went back to sleep. With that, the decision was sealed. We were doing the Mereenie Loop. </p> <p>We calculated that it would take us about 5 days to get to Kings Canyon via the Mereenie Loop, so we had enough food and set off from Alice Springs a few hours later to explore the West MacDonnell Ranges on our way. The terrain was quite hilly but very scenic, and we found a lovely camp spot in a dried out creek bed. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_2903.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Camp in creek bed" border="0" alt="Camp in creek bed" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_2903_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29232.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Ormiston Gorge" border="0" alt="Ormiston Gorge" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29232_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>We hadn’t allowed time for many detours, but the one gorge in the West MacDonnells we really wanted to visit was Ormiston Gorge, which everybody we spoke to had recommended to us. It was indeed very pretty, though the campground wasn’t very exciting. </p> <p>As Andrew and Therese had left on the same day as us and were taking the same route, we had seen them a couple of times on the way and met again at Ormiston Gorge. To give ourselves a better chance of completing the Mereenie Loop, we had asked them to do a water drop for us along the way. The only landmark on the whole 230km stretch without facilities was a turnoff to an Aboriginal village after 90km, so we agreed that they would drop the water off there for us, marking the spot by tying bits of toilet paper to a bush. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29282.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Bird in Ormiston Gorge" border="0" alt="Bird in Ormiston Gorge" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29282_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="491" /></a> </p> <p>Our permits were easily obtained at Glen Helen for the princely sum of $3, although it would have been quite obvious to everyone that we were planning to break the “no camping” rules as there was no way we could cycle the whole Mereenie Loop in one day. This was the last water point where we filled up our bladders, though we would be able to top up our supplies from Andrew and Therese who were already setting up camp 20km on in Redbank Gorge.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29202.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Ormiston Gorge water hole" border="0" alt="Ormiston Gorge water hole" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29202_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29342.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Glen Helen Gorge" border="0" alt="Glen Helen Gorge" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29342_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>When we arrived at Redbank Gorge, Andrew and Therese had already lit a warming fire and were preparing a bucket shower with water heated by their car engine. To our delight, Therese even cooked us dinner (seafood pasta!) and made one last chocolate pudding. It was great to spend another night with our Kiwi friends. </p> <p>In the morning, our tents were frozen. As we washed our dishes, the water on our cups and plates froze instantly, before we even had a chance to dry them. The Mereenie Loop road is located at over 800m altitude, making for warm days and freezing nights. </p> <p>Knowing that we would hit the dirt road soon, Guy had swapped our rear tyres back over to our old tyres which were more worn but had much more grip than the new slick tyres. However, after barely an hour of cycling, Freddie’s rear tyre developed a large bulge. A while ago we had camped on recently burned ground and must have left the tyre on a hot patch so that it had developed a small but hardly noticeable bulge. Luckily we had reinforced it with duct tape as otherwise the tube would have blown right out of the tyre. As a result we had to change back a slick tyre, not ideal for the sandy dirt roads ahead of us. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29092.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Cycling the West MacDonnells" border="0" alt="Cycling the West MacDonnells" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29092_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29392.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Split tyre" border="0" alt="Split tyre" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29392_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>We were carrying 12l of water each, adding significantly to the load of our bikes. When the tarmac road ended, we deflated our tyres to 40PSI (we normally run them on 70PSI). Cycling on the dirt road was a shock to the system as handling the heavy bikes on corrugations, sand and rocks proved to be tricky at times. Most of the time we could find somewhere on the road to cycle, even if it meant cycling on the opposite lane, but it was slow going and we were glad when we reached our water drop as the daylight faded. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29462.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="End of the tarmac" border="0" alt="End of the tarmac" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29462_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29662.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Guy cycling the Mereenie Loop" border="0" alt="Guy cycling the Mereenie Loop" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29662_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>We saw the telltale strips of toilet paper fluttering on a bush and were quietly relieved when we found the 10l water box. It even contained two complimentary chocolate bars – thanks Andrew and Therese! A few hundred metres on we found a quiet place to set up camp. Unfortunately it turned out that we had taken over the resting place of a bull who was not impressed but we were too tired to move on so stood our ground and soon he left after some stomping and snorting.</p> <p>Thanks to our water drop, we now had plenty of water for the remaining two days of cycling. We were using about 6l of drinking water per day (combined), plus 4l for each night of camping. Negotiating the sandy, rocky and corrugated road surface required a lot of concentration, and we became tired of staring intently at the road all day instead of enjoying the scenery. Our shoulders and knees were hurting from the weight of the bikes, and the rough road sometimes made us feel as if we were in a washing machine.&#160;&#160; </p> <p>Although we were in a remote area now, we still saw about 20 cars per day. Most of the time the cars were announced by large dust clouds so that we could spot them from far away. Not all cars had dust clouds, this one wasn’t going anywhere fast and with the cost of car recovery so high, sometimes abandonment is the only option. <br /> <br /><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29672.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Abandoned car on Mereenie Loop" border="0" alt="Abandoned car on Mereenie Loop" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29672_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="492" /></a> </p> <p>Trudging along over a crescent in the road a 4WD slowed down and the driver yelled:</p> <p>“I don’t suppose you guys would like some Swiss chocolate.”</p> <p>The driver turned out to be Patrick, a friend of Andrew and Therese who had been instructed by them to look after us when he saw us en route!</p> <p>A little further on we came across another example of why we have really loved cycling in the Territory, things are a little different out there. An example of how they signal to motorists to slow down for the sharp corner ahead:</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29782.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Lift um foot" border="0" alt="Lift um foot" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29782_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29792.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Puttum back down" border="0" alt="Puttum back down" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29792_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>Due to the recent rains, the road had been damaged and roadworks were taking place. We were very lucky that a 40km section of the road had just been graded, making the surface much smoother to ride on. Without these “bonus kilometres” we would have struggled to make it through the whole Mereenie Loop in our scheduled 3 days. </p> <p>All along the road we had been spotting camel foot prints on the sandy edges. Some were huge, almost the size of a dinner plate, while others alongside were much smaller. Finally we spotted a family of three camels walking on a ridge parallel to the road – a huge male camel followed by a female and a smaller young one. We managed to take a few pictures before they fled down the hill and out of view. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29812.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Camels" border="0" alt="Camels" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_29812_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="394" /></a> </p> <p>Camels had originally come to Australia with the Afghan workers building the Ghan railway through the desert. They had been used by many expeditions to transport supplies to remote communities. Being suited to the arid conditions, there are many wild camels in Australia now and we recently heard that Australia even exports camels to Saudi Arabia!</p> <p>Just as it was time to camp, Freddie’s bike started making worrying noises. A quick examination showed that one of the screws that attached the rear rack to the bike had been sheared off. The rough road and heavy load on the rack had taken its toll. Luckily the bike engineers had pre-empted this situation and allowed for a secondary screw thread so all we had to do was readjust the rack to fit in the new position, hats off to you <a href="http://www.sjscycles.com" target="_blank">SJS Cycles</a>!</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_30042.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Freddie on Mereenie Loop" border="0" alt="Freddie on Mereenie Loop" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_30042_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="492" /></a> </p> <p>At night, there was total isolation. From the moment it got dark at 6pm until about 8am, no vehicles, no people, absolutely no one passed us at all. There were no settlements nearby, no phone reception, we were totally alone. We relished this rare chance to experience perfect isolation and really enjoyed sitting around our little camp fire under the stars in this huge expanse of emptiness.</p> <p>The road went from rough to diabolical for the last 30km or so, and there was nowhere to escape the rough surface. The choice was mostly between rattling along on the deep corrugations that covered the whole width of the road at 3km/hr, or risking the sandy edges with over an inch of soft sand. </p> <p>Suddenly we hit the tarmac, a real surprise as we had calculated it to come a little later. We were feeling pretty smug that we had made it, pumped up the tyres again and screamed down a hill, enjoying the fast ride on the beautiful tarmac road. </p> <p>We couldn’t believe our eyes when 1km later, the tarmac ended and we were back on the dirt for another 15km of corrugations, so we deflated the tyres again and grimly pushed on not feeling so smug! </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_30272.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Wild melons" border="0" alt="Wild melons" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_30272_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_30382.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="The Green Centre" border="0" alt="The Green Centre" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_30382_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>This part of Australia is usually known as the “Red Centre”, but due to the strong rains this year it looks more like the “Green Centre”. All along the road are juicy wild melons. We weren’t sure if they were edible, but the area was just littered with them, very tempting.</p> <p>Soon after we hit the tarmac for real and blazed along for the last 10km towards Kings Canyon.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_30512.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="George Gill Range" border="0" alt="George Gill Range" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TheMereenieLoop_A113/IMG_30512_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="370" /></a> </p> <p>As we rolled into Kings Canyon Resort, we were happy and proud that we had conquered the Mereenie Loop with minimal damage to the bikes and ourselves. We also accepted the realisation that corrugated dirt roads on a fully loaded touring bike is not our idea of fun. It’s ok to get to somewhere special, but we love the sensation of cycling and taking in the scenery, something that is very difficult to do when you are so focussed on keeping your balance from one corrugation to the next.<span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-32400735969608196942011-07-02T05:13:00.001-07:002011-07-02T05:13:47.204-07:00Exploring Alice’s Gorges in a 4WD<p><em>Alice Springs and the East MacDonnell Ranges</em></p> <p>Immediately on our arrival in Alice Springs, or “The Alice”, we met some lovely people: first there were Greg and Cyrielle, a French couple working at our campsite, then Steve, a cycle tourer from Canberra, and Andrew and Therese, a New Zealand couple on a 4WD trip occupying the tent spot next to us. We had also really hoped to see Roger and Catherine, <a href="http://abikejourney.blogspot.com/2010/09/cappadocia-and-beyond.html" target="_blank">the French Canadian couple we met in Turkey</a>, as they were cycling through Australia and planning to be in Alice Springs at the same time as us, but unfortunately we ended up missing them by a day. </p> <p>The weather was truly miserable for our first few days in Alice Springs: it was freezing cold and raining. We wore all our layers, all day – a T-shirt, two long-sleeved merino wool tops, a fleece and a Goretex jacket, long johns, trousers and two pairs of socks. Freddie even succumbed and purchased a hot water bottle to survive the cold nights. Luckily the weather cleared after a few days, and whilst still cold, it was now clear and sunny, perfect for an afternoon stroll around the campsite where we watched birds and fed the cute little rock wallabies coming down the hill just before sunset. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2646-2.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Rock wallaby" border="0" alt="Rock wallaby" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2646-2_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2637-2.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Bird at campsite" border="0" alt="Bird at campsite" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2637-2_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>Therese and Andrew were planning to do a 4WD trip to the East MacDonnell Ranges not far from Alice Springs and kindly invited us for some “off road adventures”. We jumped at the opportunity as it gave us a chance to deviate off the Stuart Highway. We were planning to go for 3 days, then return to Alice Springs before we headed off towards Uluru. Our bikes were securely parked in Scotty the Campsite Caretaker’s shed, and our bike bags strapped to the roof of Andrew and Therese’s Landcruiser.</p> <p>The prolog of the Finke Desert Race was taking place on the day of our departure. The Kiwis were keen to go, and so were a friendly German couple we also met at the campsite, Christian and Nicole. Together we drove out of town to the racecourse and spent a few hours watching dirt bikes and quads racing along the track. The Finke Desert Race – an annual off-road 229km race through tough desert terrain - was due to take place over the following two days.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2676-2.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Landrover and landcruiser" border="0" alt="Landrover and landcruiser" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2676-2_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2682-2.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Andrew and Therese" border="0" alt="Andrew and Therese" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2682-2_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>Leaving the prolog, we said goodbye to Nicole and Christian who were heading out to the racecourse to camp and watch the actual race. </p> <p>The MacDonnell Ranges are interspersed with numerous gorges, some containing waterholes. We found a small bush campsite near John Hayes Rock Hole which was was unmanned and only accessible on a rough 4WD track travelling up a narrow, rocky creek bed. The facilities were limited to some picnic tables and a long drop toilet, and we shared a campfire with a couple of cheerful men who entertained us with their hour long cooking antics. In the morning we spent a few hours on a beautiful ridge walk around the area with views of the distant ranges then returned back through a creek bed flanked by steep red quarzite cliffs. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2762-2.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Wet feet" border="0" alt="Wet feet" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2762-2_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2727-2.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Andrew and Therese near John Hayes Rock Hole" border="0" alt="Andrew and Therese near John Hayes Rock Hole" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2727-2_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>Having dismantled our tents, we drove a little further into Trephina Gorge to do another scenic loop walk which involved wading through a creek filled with icy water. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2753-2.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Trephina Gorge" border="0" alt="Trephina Gorge" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2753-2_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="370" /></a> </p> <p>The campsite here at The Bluff was a little busier as it was located in a very picturesque setting, right near the creek. Again we made friends with our neighbours who had had the foresight to collect firewood before entering the national park where firewood collection was prohibited, and had a fun night sharing stories and making damper on their fire. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2766-2.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Camp spot in Trephina Gorge" border="0" alt="Camp spot in Trephina Gorge" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2766-2_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2744-2.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Ghost Gum" border="0" alt="Ghost Gum" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2744-2_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>Our plan was to drive to the historic Arltunga gold fields, but on the way we passed the turnoff to N’Dhala Gorge, which was officially closed to traffic. </p> <p>“Let’s see how closed it really is”, said Therese. We all quickly agreed and with that our fate was sealed. </p> <p>The 4WD track involved several creek crossings, some of which had recently had water and were still quite wet. Having let down the tires and crossed our first creek successfully, we became more confident that we would be able to get through to the gorge. </p> <p>Andrew gunned the Landcruiser into the next creek, all was going well, we looked unstoppable and were dismissing the over zealous rangers for closing the track until we entered the soft sand in the middle of the creek. Our speed slowed suddenly as the Landcruiser began to strain, the wheels spun desperately for grip in the soft muddy sand. Soon enough we came to a complete stop, we were royally bogged!</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2798-2.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Creek crossing" border="0" alt="Creek crossing" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2798-2_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2785-2.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Stuck" border="0" alt="Stuck" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2785-2_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>We jumped out to assess the damage, immediately falling into mud up to our shines. As there were no other vehicles around and we had sunk too deep into the soft mud to dig ourselves out, it was time to test out the winch. Pulling out the cable required all of our combined strength. Guy and Therese strapped the cable around a nearby River Red Gum trunk in the middle of the river while Andrew got the car ready and Freddie captured the event with our camera. As Andrew engaged the winch, we listened to the creaking sounds of the trunk straining under pressure. It was clear the 4 ton Cruiser was too much load. </p> <p>A sturdier tree was found and luckily the cable was just long enough to reach it. By now, the wheels were sunk 3/4 into the mud. The tree held strong but this time the winch was faltering, straining under the pressure. After a few slips it slowly gained traction and pulled out the Cruiser to the safety of the creek bank. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2784-2.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Andrew preparing the winch" border="0" alt="Andrew preparing the winch" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2784-2_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2789-2.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Therese directing the rescue" border="0" alt="Therese directing the rescue" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2789-2_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>We were happy to make it to N’Dhala Gorge and had a little walk there, followed by lunch to strengthen our nerves for the return trip, back across the same creek beds. To our relief, we got through the creeks without getting stuck and soon were on our way to the Arltunga gold fields. Due to our little misadventure it was now late afternoon, too late to do much sightseeing, and rather than driving back to Alice Springs that day, we decided to stay out for another night. </p> <p>The Arltunga campsite marked on our map had recently closed down but we found a little track nearby and set up our camp in the bush. For our last night, Therese made a delicious chocolate pudding, cooked in a camp oven on the fire. </p> <p>In the morning, we went back to Arltunga to explore the historic gold mines. Arltunga had experienced a gold rush in the 1880s and 1890s when gold dust was discovered in the local quarz. As the location was so remote, life was very hard for the miners. All supplies came from Adelaide via the rail head at Oodnadatta. The last 700km of the long journey had to be completed with the help of camels or horses, or on foot. Many miners pushed all their belongings, food and water on heavy wooden wheelbarrows over sand dunes and dusty tracks all the way from Oodnadatta. </p> <p>There was not much water in the area, and a harsh climate meant summers often saw temperatures rising above 50°C, whereas winters were freezing cold. Extracting the gold dust from the quarz was hard and hazardous work, and after 20 years the mines were abandoned in favour of more promising gold fields. </p> <p>Having crawled into some of the old mines and found a couple of gold specks in the local quarz (Therese discovered a hidden talent), it was time for us to return to Alice Springs. We had really enjoyed our 4WD outing, it was fantastic to get off the beaten track especially with such great company in Andrew and Therese, thanks guys!</p> <p>After a week off the bikes we were really looking forward to getting going again and experiencing the immediacy and intensity of exploring the Outback from the seat of a bicycle. A few more days in Alice Springs saw us completing some last minute odds and ends in town, hanging out at the Botanic Gardens and sampling the local cafes. We also visited the Royal Flying Doctors Service to find out more about the amazing medical service provided to remote communities and cattle stations, where pilots often have to land on makeshift airstrips, most without tarmac, and many without any lighting. </p> <p>The Desert Park was also worth a visit as we learned a lot about the flora and fauna of the inland rivers, sand country and woodlands of central Australia. The nocturnal house exhibited many endangered or extinct (in the wild) mammals, and the birds of prey show impressed with free flying kites and falcons. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2850-2.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Birds of prey show" border="0" alt="Birds of prey show" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2850-2_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2864-2.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Kangaroos" border="0" alt="Kangaroos" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AliceSprings_B3A0/IMG_2864-2_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> From Alice Springs, we had originally thought we might rent a car for the detour to Uluru (Ayer’s Rock) and Kings Canyon, but in the end it didn’t feel right to arrive at this deeply symbolic place at the centre of our new home country by car. We wanted to explore the area by bicycle, even if it would add an extra two weeks and over 900km to our trip. If only we knew fate still had another roll of the dice to play. <span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span> Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554448387166656719noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-80424739485000354932011-06-17T04:35:00.001-07:002011-07-04T23:20:54.699-07:00An Entertaining Night<p><em>Barrow Creek – Alice Springs</em></p> We were planning to fill up with water at Barrow Creek road house and push on to free camp, but the chatty owner convinced us otherwise by promising to show us his German football memorabilia in the bar. The campsite was cheap but very basic, so we decided to stay for the night. <span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span> <p>A telegraph station had been opened at Barrow Creek in 1872. It has a gruesome history as a station master and a linesman were speared by hostile Aboriginals in 1874. In retribution, the government ordered for 50 Aboriginals to be killed. This is where the name of a nearby creek originated from: Skull Creek. </p> <p>In the 1930s, shearers began the tradition of pinning a bank note with their name on it on the wall of the pub so that they could have a drink when they passed by again. Some also left hats behind, and there was even a horse saddle. They are still displayed in the bar, along with a huge collection of other paraphernalia left behind by tourists in more recent times. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AnEntertainingNight_C0B5/IMG_2503.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Barrow Creek telegraph station" border="0" alt="Barrow Creek telegraph station" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AnEntertainingNight_C0B5/IMG_2503_thumb.jpg" width="370" height="204" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AnEntertainingNight_C0B5/IMG_2506.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Pub full of memorabilia" border="0" alt="Pub full of memorabilia" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AnEntertainingNight_C0B5/IMG_2506_thumb.jpg" width="271" height="204" /></a> </p> <p>We noticed that the water coming from the taps tasted quite disgusting, the same as the water we had picked up in Wycliffe Wells the previous day. Other cyclists had warned us of the strange and salty taste of the bore water in this area. </p> <p>“I wouldn’t drink the bore water from the taps anywhere between Wycliffe Wells and Coober Pedy,” a miner told us. “It’s full of uranium and salt.”</p> <p>We trusted the miner’s opinion as his company was mining gold and uranium in the area. His group of miners was staying in basic accommodation at Barrow Creek while exploring the mining potential of the area. They had a Geiger counter and had measured 30 times the normal radiation levels at Barrow Creek. We gave in and bought water from the bar instead, at $10 for 10 litres. (Later we decided to just go by the taste and only buy water if the tap water was really undrinkable). </p> <p>The only other people staying at the campsite were two couples from the Murray River area in Victoria who were driving up to the Roper river to fish barramundi.&#160; One of the men introduced himself by donating four fresh oranges to us, a much appreciated gift, particularly as they were home grown. </p> <p>The two brothers were true blue Aussie blokes – the real McKoy from their Akubra hats, ultra short “stubby” shorts and cow hide Bluntstone boots (“with steel caps, for kicking shit!”). They were quite interested in our trip (“You’ve come all that way on bicycles? Fair dinkum!”) and invited us to share their fire, as well as giving us a home made trail mix with dried apricots and almonds from the neighbour’s garden.</p> <p>Around the fire, much manly bragging ensued and Guy felt a little inadequate when asked what his trade was. He felt like a real city boy when he admitted to working in “Information Technology”, a far cry from the wild-boar-shooting-pig-slaughtering work of these rugged Outback men. It didn’t help that they took it for granted we would carry a weapon (just as they had guns tucked away under their car seats) and Guy was asked “so, what sort of blade do you carry?” Erm, Swiss Army vegetable knife…</p> <p>Though from different worlds we enjoyed each others company and promised to look them up next time we were in the Riverine area.</p> <p>Back on the Stuart Highway we passed Central Mount Stuart, which John MacDouall Stuart calculated to be in the centre of Australia, equidistant between the most northerly and southerly, and easterly and westerly points of the land mass. In the afternoon, we suddenly felt very tired and were glad when we arrived at the Ti Tree roadhouse after 89km. </p> <p>The campsite was lovely and good value, with soft grass and lots of wildlife. Peacocks wandered around and pink and grey galahs screeched as they flew from tree to tree. This time we had taken more food than we needed, so we decided to take a day off and catch up on some blogging. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AnEntertainingNight_C0B5/IMG_2515.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Washing at Ti Tree" border="0" alt="Washing at Ti Tree" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AnEntertainingNight_C0B5/IMG_2515_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AnEntertainingNight_C0B5/IMG_2555.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Peacocks at our campsite" border="0" alt="Peacocks at our campsite" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AnEntertainingNight_C0B5/IMG_2555_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>Many people had warned us about the plagues of mice and rats terrorising campers south of Alice Springs. Apparently the ground is literally covered in them at night. One cyclist we met had told us that a mouse had eaten a hole in his tent. We hadn’t encountered any mice so far, but in the morning we discovered mouse poop around the tent, and a mouse had squeezed into one of our panniers to nibble on our bread and flour.</p> <p>Refreshed, we had a good day’s riding and managed over 100km quite easily. We found a beautiful bush camp. Usually we make a fire when we free camp. There is nobody around for miles anyway and it is so cold at night that we would be in bed by 7pm if we didn’t have a fire. We had been experimenting with making damper, the traditional bush man’s bread that is baked in a camp fire. Having tried different versions with raisins and chocolate chips, we baked a really nice loaf of damper with pumpkin and raisins. Yum!</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AnEntertainingNight_C0B5/IMG_2591.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Bush camp" border="0" alt="Bush camp" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AnEntertainingNight_C0B5/IMG_2591_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AnEntertainingNight_C0B5/IMG_2586.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Damper" border="0" alt="Damper" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AnEntertainingNight_C0B5/IMG_2586_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>Unexpectedly, it started raining the next morning. All day it drizzled and rained and we felt cold as it was only 11°C. When we reached the rest area at the Tropic of Capricorn, we decided to make a few cups of tea and wait until the worst was over. After a couple of hours it was still raining, but we were keen to get to Alice so we decided to push on.</p> <p>Ever since leaving Darwin, we had been steadily climbing. Just before Alice Springs, we finally reached the highest point of the Stuart Highway, 728m above sea level. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AnEntertainingNight_C0B5/IMG_2604.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Rainy day" border="0" alt="Rainy day" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AnEntertainingNight_C0B5/IMG_2604_thumb.jpg" width="271" height="204" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AnEntertainingNight_C0B5/IMG_2606.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Welcome to Alice Springs" border="0" alt="Welcome to Alice Springs" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/AnEntertainingNight_C0B5/IMG_2606_thumb.jpg" width="360" height="204" /></a> </p> <p>We had heard that the Finke Desert Race, an offroad motorbike race, was taking place a couple of days later, but we hadn’t expected the campsites to be booked out because of this. After asking at a couple of campsites in Alice Springs, drenched in rain, we finally found a camp. We were cold and wet but happy to have arrived bang smack in the middle of central Australia.</p> Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554448387166656719noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-17696743076055494072011-06-16T23:16:00.001-07:002011-07-02T05:41:43.513-07:00The Devil’s Marbles, a UFO Centre and a Friendly Dingo<p><em>Tennant Creek – Barrow Creek</em></p> Tennant Creek had a strange feel to it, with its barred windows, closed-down shops and most shockingly a street cafe that was encased in a cage. The insightful Nyinkka Nyunyu arts centre with its tranquil garden and attached café felt like a ray of light in contrast to the town. We had an interesting encounter with the Aboriginal man running the gallery who also teaches youngsters horse riding skills to help them get work on farms.<span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span> <p>Three days of eating, resting, blogging and meeting interesting fellow travellers at the well-equipped campsite passed by quickly. To our relief, the wind also became weaker while we were there. Apparently the last week had been exceptionally windy, so we were hopeful that the headwinds might be a little kinder to us for the next 500km to Alice Springs. </p> <p>After our recent experience <a href="http://abikejourney.blogspot.com/2011/06/desert-in-bloom.html" target="_blank">running out of food</a>, we left town with all the food we could carry and camped after 90km at a rest area. Overnight camping is allowed at most rest areas in the Northern Territory, though many are not really suitable for tents. At this rest area we were lucky to have a spot to pitch the tent, complete with a picnic table and water tank. We shared the area with five groups of grey nomads in caravans, as well as a local guy sleeping in a swag in the back of his pickup.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2372.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="Guy at rest area" border="0" alt="Guy at rest area" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2372_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="492" /></a></p> <p>The following morning we cycled to the Devils Marbles. These amazing granite formations have been rounded over a billion years of harsh desert weather and hang precariously at all angles giving the impression that even the slightest touch could send them rolling.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2403.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Rainbow serpent eggs" border="0" alt="Rainbow serpent eggs" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2403_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2417.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Devils Marbles" border="0" alt="Devils Marbles" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2417_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>Aboriginals believe that the stones are the eggs of the rainbow serpent, and the Devils Marbles are a powerful Dreaming place associated with the Dreamtime creation story.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2436.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Split neatly down the middle" border="0" alt="Split neatly down the middle" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2436_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2422.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Freddie at the Devils Marbles" border="0" alt="Freddie at the Devils Marbles" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2422_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>After a stroll around we were about to move on when we spotted our first dingo. Many Australians feel apprehensive about these wild dogs who sometimes attack flocks of sheep and have been known to attack small children in isolated incidents. We had heard dingoes howling near our campsites on some nights but hadn’t actually seen one yet. This dingo was not shy at all and almost seemed keen to pose for our photos as he warmed himself in the morning sun. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2455.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Our first dingo" border="0" alt="Our first dingo" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2455_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2462.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Dingo sunning himself" border="0" alt="Dingo sunning himself" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2462_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>Our next stop after lunch was the UFO centre at Wycliffe Wells. This roadhouse lies on an intersection of ley lines (energy lines) so that apparently any UFOs in the area will pass directly overhead. Indeed there had been an unusually high number of UFO sightings in this area. We wondered if it had anything to do with the funny taste of the bore drinking water. The bar was covered in newspaper clippings about UFO sightings. However, we did not linger long. Freddie decided to have a quick shower, and then we moved on to find a bush camp site. </p> <p>On the way, Guy spotted a guitar lying in grass near the road. It was in pretty good shape, only a couple of strings had snapped. Guy attempted to ride with it but it was proving too difficult so he left it balanced upright on the side of the road. A few 100 meters down the road we noticed a car stopped, no doubt a little baffled then a passenger got out to pick up the guitar. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2470.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_2470" border="0" alt="IMG_2470" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2470_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2477.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="Bike is too small for the guitar" border="0" alt="Bike is too small for the guitar" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/TennantCreekAliceSprings_AEB8/IMG_2477_thumb.jpg" width="318" height="240" /></a>&#160; <br /> <br />We found a bush camp spot near the turnoff to Ali Curung, the Aboriginal village Ruth (who we stayed with in Darwin) grew up in. When we woke up in the morning, something was missing: the wind! For the first time since we arrived in Australia, it was very quiet with only a weak headwind in the afternoon. </p> <p>We knew we were coming up to the spot where the English backpacker Peter Falconio was tragically murdered in 2001. He and his girlfriend had been stopped by a man who pretended to have car troubles and proceeded to shoot Peter while his girlfriend escaped unscathed.<font color="#ff0000"> </font></p> <p>It felt a little creepy as we approached the place of the murder. Just then, we noticed a pickup slowing down behind us and following us for a little while. In our rear view mirrors, we could see it pulling level with us. It was the first time a car had slowed down next to us in Australia. Too scared to turn our heads and look at the driver, we heard a cheerful voice spurring us on: “Keep pushing, you’re almost at the top!” Relief swept over us when we realised it was just a fellow tourist and no murderer after all :-)</p> Guyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09554448387166656719noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-53806328451333086132011-06-15T23:19:00.001-07:002011-06-15T23:19:34.640-07:00Desert in Bloom<p><em>Dunmara – Tennant Creek</em></p> <p>It was almost like someone had flicked the temperature switch to “winter mode”. The nights were cooling off quickly and we found ourselves seeking out the sun rather than the shade during our snack stops. The chilly mornings saw us cycling in full winter gear, complete with long johns and thick gloves. We were seriously wondering how we would cope with the even colder temperatures around Alice Springs. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2188.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Wattle avenues" border="0" alt="Wattle avenues" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2188_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="370" /></a> </p> <p>On leaving Dunmara we noticed the scenery changing from the fertile, tropical forests to low scrub, announcing the start of the arid zone or dry centre. However thanks to the recent strong wet season, the desert was in full bloom. We cycled through avenues of yellow wattle bushes, admired the spiky pink flowers by the roadside, stepped over white blossoms on creepers covering the ground and marvelled over the gum trees that seemed to be blossoming all around us. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2098.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Pink desert flowers" border="0" alt="Pink desert flowers" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2098_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2242.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Desert in bloom" border="0" alt="Desert in bloom" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2242_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>Most of the creeks were still full of water and sometimes we happened upon a serene billabong complete with an assortment of birdlife and once a family of wild ducks frolicking in the shallows. </p> <p>We see evidence of snakes most days, unfortunately most are mangled on the side of the road. We have seen a few brown snakes, about 1.5m long and even a rattle snake. A brown snake was sunning itself on the road but quickly slithered off into the bush as we approached. Displayed in glass tanks in the zoo they can look fearsome but in the bush, in their natural environment they are placid and beautiful. Even though Australian snakes are famous for their deadliness, they are also very shy. Staying away from long grass and making some noise as we walk into the bush is all that is needed to make them scatter. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2074.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Tranquil billabong" border="0" alt="Tranquil billabong" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2074_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2206.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Snakes in the NT" border="0" alt="Snakes in the NT" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2206_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160; </p> <p>We gently climbed all day, cycling towards the hamlet of Elliott. Many people we met had warned us against staying in Elliott. “It’s just got a really bad feel about it,” they said. “The shops windows are barred up even during the day. I wouldn’t stay there if I was you.”</p> <p>Elliott would have been a convenient overnight stop, but we also needed a reason to finally start wild camping so we looked for a campsite 10km before Elliott. It was quite tricky as the vegetation was very thick. It was hard to get in, and with cattle fences on either side, the options were limited. Finally we found a clearing, it wasn’t far from the road so we could hear the odd Road Train roaring through at night but it was covered enough so that we were even able to make a fire. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2254.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Wild camp" border="0" alt="Wild camp" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2254_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2059.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Spiky flowers" border="0" alt="Spiky flowers" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2059_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>In the morning, the legs were feeling heavy, but the beautiful scenery kept us going, together with the hope of finding some food in Elliott. Some travellers find the scenery here monotonous, but at our gentle speed we see constant changes in the landscape as the beauty is often in the detail from the wild flowers, butterflies and birds to the subtle variations in soil colour in this ever changing landscape. Of course we are very lucky to be here during such a strong wild flower bloom. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2258.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Amazing colours" border="0" alt="Amazing colours" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2258_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2115.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Butterflies" border="0" alt="Butterflies" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2115_thumb.jpg" width="319" height="240" /></a> </p> <p>We were almost a bit disappointed when we arrived in Elliott. All was quiet on this Saturday morning. Sure, the fuel station windows and doors were covered in mesh wire, and a few hung-over characters were loitering about, but otherwise we did not see much suspicious activity and felt perfectly safe. </p> <p>Elliott was the only hamlet on our way and our only real hope of getting some food supplies, but the shop was very basic. Everything was 2-3 times the regular price. Of course it must cost a lot more to get food items into these remote communities, but $5 for a loaf of bread that expired 3 days ago is still a lot for a poor cyclist!</p> <p>The over priced campsite at Renner Springs was right next to the road with poor facilities so we decided it was better to bush camp more often moving forward. The grocery store was virtually empty except for a few cans of mushrooms and peas which cost us an arm and a leg. </p> <p>At lunchtime, Freddie had another puncture. We soon discovered a gash in the back tyre. The puncture resistance is now low as our tyres are reaching the end of their life (after 10,000km) but the tread is still good so we hope to nurse them through to Adelaide where we have new tyres awaiting. For the moment, we swapped her rear tyre out for our spare tyre and fixed the old one with superglue.</p> <p>&#160;<a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2322.jpg"><img style="background-image: none; border-right-width: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="Another puncture" border="0" alt="Another puncture" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2322_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="492" /></a></p> <p>At Banka Banka station, we managed to scrounge some water from the chirpy owners. We are really in quite remote territory now. The stations here are huge – Banka Banka station is small by comparison, covering “only” 2,000km², on which they are planning to put 2,500 heads of cattle. To count the number of the water holes they have on the property they needed to charter a helicopter. <font color="#333333">The largest station in Australia is larger than Israel at 24,000km², 8 times the size of the largest station in the US.</font></p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2292.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Outback windmill" border="0" alt="Outback windmill" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2292_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2256.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Remote highway" border="0" alt="Remote highway" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2256_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>15 km down the road we struck gold, well not real gold but a lovely bush camp spot near an old quarry. The more sparse terrain is now much more bush camp friendly as we have enough cover and clear ground to pitch on. We were surrounded by wildflowers and young gums giving the impression of a little garden with an almost perfect circular clearing amongst the tall spinifex grass. In the morning we woke to the sounds of a kangaroo jumping around our tent, obviously curious as to the nature of our presence.</p> <p>On our final day cycling into Tennant Creek we had the last crumbs of instant coffee, the last peanut butter and jam and the last slice of bread. At lunchtime, we dived into the emergency food supplies and cooked some instant risotto. We arrived at the Threeways roadhouse, 25km before Tennant Creek, starving. Some overpriced muffins gave us the energy to push the final distance to Tennant Creek where we planned to spend our time eating and resting. </p> <p>Amazed by the amount we ate over the last 8 days on the road, we went straight to the supermarket to buy some items for dinner and breakfast. However, to our horror, the supermarket had just closed. We got a takeaway from Red Rooster and dejectedly pitched our tent at the local campsite. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2362.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Beautiful rock in the sunset" border="0" alt="Beautiful rock in the sunset" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2362_thumb.jpg" width="404" height="304" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2365.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Yum, hairy kangaroo tails" border="0" alt="Yum, hairy kangaroo tails" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/DalyWaterstoTennantCreek_A45F/IMG_2365_thumb.jpg" width="229" height="304" /></a> </p> <p>Our supermarket visit the following day led to two discoveries: Firstly, everything in the supermarket was much more expensive than in the rest of Australia – bad news for two hungry cyclists - and secondly, they had hairy kangaroo tails in the freezer, yum!<span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000046275662845633.post-67013834977122630612011-06-09T21:17:00.001-07:002011-06-09T21:17:42.863-07:00Road Trains and Outback Pubs<p><em>Larrimah – Dunmara</em></p> <p>It was inevitable the time would come and we were sure what it was, no other vehicle on the road could be heard from over a kilometre away: a Road Train. These beasts are 4 times the length of a regular truck (hence the name) and are infamous within the Northern Territory cycling community for throwing cyclist off and even pulling their bikes under as the they thunder past at up to 130 km/h, pulling two or three trailers along the narrow highway.</p> <p>We watched the massive truck loom closer in our rear view mirror. We knew what to do, we must jump off the road to a safe distance and let it pass. As we watched it approach we were amazed to see it pull out of its lane, it was clearly giving us, a couple of wee cyclists, a wide berth! Nonetheless we stuck to the edge of the road and braced ourselves for the thunderous backdraft as it passed. The cabin passed then the first trailer, and the second, till finally the third trailer passed us and nothing, no lashing from side to side, no sucking draft.</p> <p>We later realised that riding into the strong south-easterly winds had some advantages, we were upwind and as a result the backdraft from the Road Trains was minimal. Still we knew we had to be vigilant as not all the drivers are able to pull out, as after all, the Stuart Highway is no bigger than a country lane in parts. Luckily, most of the Road Trains seemed to be north-bound and we only had about 5 per day actually overtaking us. </p> <p>Coming into Daly Waters at dusk, we spotted a road train carrying fuel parked on the side of the road. The driver was busy fixing some pressure cables and we went over to find out a little bit about these men responsible for such incredible loads. </p> <p>“We don’t understand how you do it, driving on these narrow windy roads with such a massive rig,” we admitted to the driver.</p> <p>“Well, I don’t understand how you do it,” he replied. “Cycling all day in the middle of nowhere with no shade, water or food!”</p> <p>The driver, Footie, told us that road trains only exist in Australia, Namibia and Canada where they cover the vast distances between towns. The drivers can drive up to 14 hours a day and&#160; need to have the skills to fix the road train if it breaks down. This particular road train was supplying fuel to the roadhouses along the Stuart Highway. They are the lifeline of the Outback and without them these remote communities could not survive. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RoadTrainsandDesertFish_110DF/IMG_2159.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Road Train" border="0" alt="Road Train" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RoadTrainsandDesertFish_110DF/IMG_2159_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="492" /></a> </p> <p>The Daly Waters roadhouse is one of the most famous Outback pubs and the most popular stopover between Katherine and Tennant Creek. Daly Waters used to be a telegraph station and in the 1930s, there was an important air strip near the pub: Qantas aeroplanes on flights between Sydney and London used to stop in Daly Waters to refuel. Passengers would disembark and be helped across a small creek with the option of taking a Flying Fox across for those wanting to take the express route! They would then visit the pub while the plane was being refuelled. Modern airlines take note.</p> <p>In those days, the tradition of leaving something behind at the pub began, so there are lots of memorabilia on the walls that were collected over the years, from photos, badges and T-shirts to bras and stubby holders. </p> <p>The campsite was very crowded, there must have been well over a hundred caravans, and most people had booked the Beef ‘n’ Barra BBQ with comedy entertainment. Even though we planned to celebrate our year on the road here, our budget did not stretch that far. Instead, we treated ourselves to our first meal out in Australia, a delicious Barra Burger. </p> <p>Barramundi, or “Barra”, is the most popular freshwater fish in the Northern Territory and is on offer almost everywhere. We had really not expected to eat fish in the desert, but it was absolutely delicious. At the time we did not realise it, but in hindsight we were very glad we had this meal out to save our dwindling food supplies.</p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RoadTrainsandDesertFish_110DF/IMG_2161.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Daly Waters Pub" border="0" alt="Daly Waters Pub" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RoadTrainsandDesertFish_110DF/IMG_2161_thumb.jpg" width="354" height="214" /></a>&#160;&#160; <a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RoadTrainsandDesertFish_110DF/IMG_2175.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Barra Burger" border="0" alt="Barra Burger" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RoadTrainsandDesertFish_110DF/IMG_2175_thumb.jpg" width="284" height="214" /></a> </p> <p>We had miscalculated on a few food items and were already running low on some things such as milk powder, bread and snacks after only 3 days of cycling. In the hope of restocking our pantry we stopped at the nearby Hi-Way Inn, which according to our map was supposed to have a shop. Imagine our disappointment when we found that the shop only sold souvenirs, cold drinks and a few snacks. We did find a loaf of 3 month old bread in the freezer, which saved us momentarily as the next shop marked on our map was still 2 days away. </p> <p><a href="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RoadTrainsandDesertFish_110DF/IMG_2266.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="Wide open spaces" border="0" alt="Wide open spaces" src="http://www.abikejourney.com/thumbnails/RoadTrainsandDesertFish_110DF/IMG_2266_thumb.jpg" width="654" height="492" /></a> </p> <p>Back on the road we met another cyclist, this time from the Netherlands. He was a lucky chap who had enjoyed sunshine and tail winds all the way since Sydney, frequently covering over 200km per day. “It’s like sailing,” he beamed, “you hardly have to pedal.” </p> <p>“Oh yes, we know exactly what you mean…” we replied, trying to fight back the tears as we pushed into the ferocious headwind.</p> <p>We’d planned to take the afternoon off at Dunmara, 52km away. It was a nice campsite in natural surroundings. With our food pantry diminishing fast, a full rest day was not an option unless we found a decent shop somewhere. Otherwise the name of the game was to get to Tennant Creek, and fast. <span style="color: #f9f0cf">||</span></p> Freddiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11160359859601783587noreply@blogger.com1